Mark Cuban is very bullish about Ethereum given that the crypto asset is about to undergo what many analysts and traders are simply referring to as “the merge.”
Mark Cuban Is Happy About Ethereum’s New Direction
The merge is a planned switch in protocols for the Ethereum network. Up to this point, ETH has largely operated – much like bitcoin – on a proof of work (PoW) module, though it’s now going to be changing to a proof of stake (PoS) module. This will largely reduce its environmental impact, with some experts claiming that Ethereum will now emit over 90 percent fewer emissions during its mining process.
This is further proof that the mining arguments in the crypto space are continuing to fly in all directions. While there are some that say crypto mining doesn’t use nearly as much energy as we think, others disagree heavily. There are many environmentalists out there who think that bitcoin and crypto mining is taking the world down a dark path that will soon be irreversible if people don’t get their act together.
These discussions have long been supported by some of the industry’s biggest executives including Elon Musk of Tesla and SpaceX fame. Last year, the South African billionaire and entrepreneur announced that he was going to allow crypto fans to purchase Tesla vehicles with bitcoin. This got everyone talking and the price of BTC even shot up to about $57,000 per unit, though this decision was later rescinded because Musk was worried about emissions, and he didn’t want to push the bitcoin agenda any further if miners weren’t going to be transparent about their energy sources.
In addition, Kevin O’Leary from the “Shark Tank” television program stated that he would no longer be purchasing bitcoin mined in China given that the country was not known for its environmentally friendly extraction methods.
Cuban believes this new move by Ethereum is going to place its network in a top-ranking position, allowing it to compete more effectively with bitcoin and larger digital currencies. He also stated that he owns Ethereum, as well as various non-fungible tokens (NFTs) built atop the ETH blockchain. He said:
What really changed everything was smart contracts. Smart contracts came along, and that created defi [or decentralized finance] and NFTs [or non-fungible tokens]. That’s what changed the game. That’s what got me excited. That’s why it’s a lot like the internet.
Others Issue Positive Sentiment
Cuban isn’t the only one excited by the prospects of the merge. Blockchain analytics firm Into the Block recently wrote in a newsletter:
Following the merge, the amount of ETH issued is projected to drop by 90 percent, which would lead similar levels of fees to reduce ether’s supply by as much as five percent a year.
At press time, Ethereum is trading for just under $3,200 per unit.