Ethereum Shanghai Mainnet Shadow Fork has Gone Live

Ethereum developers have successfully implemented the first mainnet

Shadow fork in preparation for the Shanghai upgrade. This upgrade is scheduled for March and will allow validators to unstake their ETH.

The Ethereum network has made progress toward the Shanghai upgrade. In preparation for the launch, the development team successfully deployed the first mainnet shadow fork. This will allow Ethereum validators to begin testing withdrawals and planning for when the upgrade hits the mainnet.

The Shanghai update is set to go live in March and is highly anticipated. Since the transition to proof-of-stake, Ethereum stakers' ETH has been locked into the network. Validators have long demanded that ETH be unstaked.

The mainnet shadow fork occurred on January 23 and will aid in testing the feature before it is formally launched. As per Ethereum core developer Marius Van Der Wijden, there were only a few minor concerns that were all resolved.

Currently, nearly $26.5 billion in ETH has been staked. There is a withdrawal limit, which will prevent an outflow of staked ETH. Additional enhancements were intended for the Shanghai upgrade, but they were postponed in order to prioritize unstaking.

Some Ethereum Developers Warn Against Rushing the Upgrade

While most people are excited about the Shanghai launch, a small group of Ethereum developers is opposed to it. They feel that unstaking ETH is more about meeting public requests than it is about the long-term sustainability of Ethereum.

They argue that the shift may result in technological debt, making long-term development more difficult. Their main point was about an encoding method that is about to change.

Over 500k Validators Before the Shadow Fork

Meanwhile, Ethereum's stakeholders are preparing for the Shanghai upgrade's deployment. The network recently passed 500,000 validators, which is a big milestone. This is especially true given the fact that the minimum stake amount is 32 ETH.

The price of Ethereum is in fantastic shape and has been a top performer as the market emerges from its fall. The price of ETH is currently trading at $1,624, up 3.7% from a week ago.

Also read: Bitcoin's Growth Is Being Hampered by SEC Regulations: Grayscale CEO