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Ethereum 2.0 offers attractive APYs on staking and could be an incredibly beneficial investment before The Merge. It is a good asset in your portfolio if you are keen on generating passive income and putting your cryptocurrencies to work.

Until The Merge, when the Ethereum mainnet will fuse with The Beacon Chain, ETH2 offers you an attractive way to earn through holding Ethereum 2.0. However, as the date for The Merge to go live comes close and the number of stakers increases, the APYs on ETH2 are sliding lower.

Eventually, the Ethereum 2.0 price will be the same as Ethereum (ETH) once the blockchain transitions into a complete proof of stake network. Once this happens, the Ethereum 2.0 price could head higher as the infrastructure offers a better experience, and its adoption by projects and users pick up.

Ethereum is already the largest platform by TVL for dApps across DeFi, NFT, metaverse, and gaming. After The Merge and the transition to PoS is complete, the cryptocurrency could become an even more valuable asset. As a result, it could be worthwhile to invest in ETH2 when you have funds available.

For now, ETH2 can only be used for staking via the ETH2 Deposit Contract to become validators in The Beacon Chain. The Beacon Chain, as of July 2022, is the consensus layer of the Ethereum upgrade.

As an ETH holder, you can become a validator on The Beacon Chain by staking a minimum of 32 ETH2 as collateral to earn attractive rewards and grow your Ethereum 2.0 crypto holdings. As a validator, you can participate in the consensus mechanism by verifying transactions and producing new blocks in the network.

In addition to staking ETH2 on The Beacon Chain, you can also stake Ethereum 2.0 via supported exchanges and platforms. This function can offer you a convenient way to earn passive income without becoming a validator, requiring a smaller investment from your end. However, the APYs could also be lower in this option.

You can also buy or sell ETH2 against other cryptocurrencies on exchanges such as KuCoin. You also have the option to HODL ETH2 long-term if you believe in the future potential of the Ethereum PoS network. On the price chart above, review the current price of Ethereum 2.0, ETH2 market cap, 24h trading volume, and perform fundamental, technical, and sentiment analysis on ETH2 price action before placing a new trade in the market.

Here are the critical differences between ETH and ETH2:

Supported Blockchain

ETH is the native cryptocurrency of the Ethereum mainnet, a proof of work blockchain network. The Ethereum blockchain functioned as the execution layer before The Merge, where transactions occur, and smart contracts are executed.

ETH2, on the other hand, is the native token of The Beacon Chain - the consensus layer of Ethereum 2.0. This network is responsible for leveraging the proof of stake consensus mechanism to validate transactions and create new blocks until The Merge brings both networks together.

ETH Mining vs. ETH2 Staking

As the native asset of a PoW blockchain, Ether or ETH could be mined during block production and validation of transactions taking place on the Ethereum mainnet. On the other hand, you cannot mine ETH2 as The Beacon Chain is designed to utilize a PoS consensus. You can, however, stake ETH2 to become a validator and contribute to block production, earning rewards in ETH2 in the process.

Circulating Supply

The circulating supply of ETH2 is the same as ETH. ETH1 or ETH does not have a fixed supply but uses an inflationary model, meaning there is no upper limit on the total supply or max supply. This means there is no fixed limit on the number of ETH coins that can be mined.

However, ETH2 will utilize a deflationary model, allowing for token burning mechanisms to reduce the total supply of ETH2 tokens in the market in the future. The new Ethereum will use the deflationary mechanism to support the ETH2 price and value.

After The Merge, when The Beacon Chain and current Ethereum mainnet are combined, the existing Ethereum blockchain will officially transition from being a PoW network to a PoS network. Once this happens, the Ethereum network will officially process transactions and use a PoS consensus to validate transactions and create new blocks.

Once The Beacon Chain merges with the Ethereum main network, Ethereum’s ETH will no longer be mined. Instead, validators will have to stake ETH tokens to become eligible for participating in the consensus process. They will contribute to block production and receive rewards in ETH tokens for their efforts, increasing their holdings via the staking process.

The Merge will also merge the entire transactional history of the Ethereum blockchain ever since it went live. All your ETH funds will also automatically work on the PoS Ethereum blockchain following this event.

You can stake ETH2 conveniently via KuCoin Earn to generate attractive returns and grow your crypto holdings. Here’s how to stake ETH2 on KuCoin Earn:

⧫ Visit the ETH 2.0 Staking section on KuCoin Earn.

⧫ Click on the ‘Start ETH 2.0 Staking’ button on the page.

⧫ Convert your ETH crypto to ETH2 and start staking them on the platform.

⧫ Enter the number of ETH2 tokens you wish to stake and review all the relevant information before confirming the transaction.

⧫ Sit back and receive rewards on your staked ETH2 tokens.

You can stake ETH2 via the deposit contract to become a validator on The Beacon Chain or opt for staking via supported exchanges. However, the former option delivers the highest returns.

Here’s how to stake ETH on Ethereum 2.0 by setting up your own node:

1. Head to the Ethereum Launchpad to select the ‘Become a Validator’ option.

2. Click on Continue after understanding the proof of stake mechanism.

3. Continue to click on the ‘I Accept button after reviewing the information provided in the next few steps - Deposit, The terminal, Uptime, Bad behaviour, Key management, Commitment, Early adoption risks, and Checklist.

3. Finally, click on Continue after the Confirmation stage in the tenth step.

4. You can choose an execution client and set up a node on the next page. Click on Continue to proceed to the next step.

5. Select your ETH2 client on this page and click on Continue.

6. The following section will let you generate key pairs. Enter the number of validators you would like to run here. You can also choose your command-line app in this section and download it from Github.

7. Note down the seed phrase and store it securely.

8. In the next section, where you can upload deposit data, you can connect your ETH wallet to start staking.

The Ethereum Shanghai Upgrade, the next key milestone in the Ethereum 2.0 roadmap, is scheduled for April 12, 2023. The date is slightly delayed from initial expectations that the update will roll out in March 2023, following a successful testnet launch in February.

The Ethereum Shanghai hard fork event will allow validators to unlock their staked ETH and rewards from the network. ETH staking had gone live on the Ethereum PoS Beacon Chain in December 2020 when the Ethereum Foundation decided to switch from a Proof-of-Work (PoW) consensus to a Proof-of-Stake (PoS) model.

Following this, The Ethereum Merge in September 2021 began the transition process when the Beacon Chain merged with the Ethereum mainnet, bringing the PoS consensus to the Ethereum network. The Shanghai Upgrade will be the next significant development in Ethereum’s journey toward increasing its efficiency and capabilities, allowing stakers to unlock and access their locked ETH from the network.