Ethermine, the world’s largest Ethereum mining pool, has decided to drop Ethereum Proof-of-Work (PoW) mining after Ethereum’s upcoming transition to Proof-of-Stake (PoS) or the merge, according to a blog post published by the mining company.
The merge, slated for 15 September, is the most anticipated event in the crypto calendar for the year. The set date will also be the last day PoW miners on Ethermine can mine Ethereum using the PoW consensus mechanism. Ethermine’s miner dashboard will display a countdown to the exact time until users can continue to mine Ether using PoW.
The blog post further states that miners will no longer be able to mine Ether by validating the network using computer video cards (GPUs) or specialized ASIC rigs. As a result, Ethermine’s ETH mining pool will switch to withdrawal-only mode upon the merge.
The platform will, however, support the mining of Ethereum Classic, Ravencoin, Ergo, and Beam, all of which follow a PoW consensus mechanism. Besides, Ethermine is offering a 0% fee promotion throughout September for the coins mentioned.
Cost to miners
The company’s decision to drop Ethereum PoW will affect its 228,121 active miners, who generate a total hash rate of 262.8 TH/s. Many miners have been pushing to keep the current PoW consensus mechanism going as the switch to PoS will lead to losses to the tune of billions of dollars in terms of mining hardware, not to mention the loss of revenue. Many miners have threatened to maintain the original PoW protocol to protect their investments.
FAQs
Which Ethereum mining pool is most profitable?
It’s important to note that the mining landscape is highly competitive and volatile, so what’s profitable today may not be tomorrow. Miners should also consider factors like the pool’s reputation, payout frequency, and stability in addition to profitability when choosing a pool. Additionally, Ethereum is transitioning from a proof-of-work (PoW) to a proof-of-stake (PoS) consensus mechanism, which will eventually make traditional mining obsolete.
What is the best mining option after Ethereum?
Ethereum was one of the most popular cryptocurrencies to mine, primarily using a proof-of-work (PoW) algorithm. However, Ethereum has been planning to transition to a proof-of-stake (PoS) consensus mechanism as part of Ethereum 2.0, which could significantly impact the mining landscape.
After Ethereum’s transition to PoS, traditional GPU and ASIC mining for Ethereum will likely become obsolete. Miners will no longer be able to use their computing power to secure the network and earn rewards, as PoS relies on validators locking up a certain amount of cryptocurrency as collateral instead of solving computational puzzles like PoW.
What is the largest Ethereum pool?
To find the current largest Ethereum mining pool, you should check a reliable cryptocurrency mining pool tracking website or a cryptocurrency news source. Websites like “Etherchain” and “Etherscan” provide information about Ethereum mining pools, their hash rates, and the percentage of the network’s total hash rate they control.
What is the minimum payout for the Ethereum pool?
The minimum payout for many Ethereum mining pools ranged from 0.05 to 0.2 Ethereum (ETH). However, these values could have changed since then, so it’s essential to check the specific mining pool’s website or documentation for the most up-to-date information on their minimum payout requirements.
