Ethereum Classic (ETC), one of the forgotten altcoin projects, has been gaining momentum lately in anticipation of Ethereum’s (ETH) Merge update. Along with Merge on Ethereum, coins will be created on the network with a “proof-of-stake” mechanism. In other words, the proof-of-work (PoW) system, which requires miners and mining rigs, will disappear for ETH. However, there are people and companies that make a living with ETH mining. These are expected to migrate to ETC. Recently, mining company AntPool announced that it will focus on ETC mining. Here are the details…
AntPool supports legacy altcoin ETC ecosystem
Mining pool AntPool, affiliated with mining platform giant Bitmain, has invested $10 million to support the Ethereum Classic ecosystem. Lv Lei, CEO of the pool, said at Bitmain’s World Digital Mining Summit on Tuesday that he plans to continue to invest more.
Ethereum Classic is scheduled to remain proof-of-work (PoW) while the Ethereum network works to transform it into a proof-of-stake (PoS) model. PoS will drastically change the way Ethereum validates blocks, adds to the Blockchain, and issues new Ethereum (ETH). In doing so, it will eliminate the need for specialized mining rigs like Bitmain does. However, Ethereum Classic will continue to issue native ETC cryptocurrency using these platforms.
The initial $10 million investment went into the development and research of applications of the Ethereum Classic mainnet to improve the overall performance of the network. Bitmain started selling its latest Ethereum mining rig model (Antminer E9) in early July. The mining rig manufacturer also announced at the World Digital Mining Summit in Miami that it will accept payments in ETC for all Antminer models.
Vitalik Buterin also supports ETC
As we reported as Kriptokoin.com, Ethereum founder Vitalik Buterin also drew attention to ETC. Vitalik Buterin, co-founder of Ethereum, pointed out that after Merge, anyone who wants to continue working in a proof-of-work network has the option to use Ethereum Classic (ETC). In a speech on July 21, Buterin pointed out that Ethereum Classic is an “all good chain.” Buterin used the following statements:
As you know, there are many Blockchains like Ethereum Classic which is the original Ethereum. He didn’t betray vision by forking the DAO. ETC is a very welcoming community. They will definitely welcome fans of proof of work… If you like PoW, you can use Ethereum Classic. It is a totally good chain.