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Ethereum’s highly-anticipated multi-client Medalla testnet is now live with 20,000 validators.
The Final Testnet Before ETH 2.0
Ethereum’s final testnet before the launch of ETH 2.0, Medalla went live on August 4, 1 PM UTC.
According to the team, the Medalla testnet is essentially a “dress rehearsal” for the impending ETH 2.0 upgrade slated for launch later in the year.
Although the multi-client testnet launch initially suffered from a lack of validator participation, it quickly made up for it to be considered “justified and finalized,” Ethereum Foundation’s Hudson Jameson tweeted.
Update: Medella is justified and finalized, meaning that it has the required amount of validators online!https://t.co/UDIvgRoj0T https://t.co/R6GCveEdFX
— Hudson Jameson (@hudsonjameson) August 4, 2020
The launch of the Medalla testnet is of particular significance for Ethereum as it gives a taste of how the actual, full-fledged ETH 2.0 network would function once it is launched toward the end of the year.
In a recent blog post, Ethereum developer Danny Ryan wrote,
“The launch of Medalla is a huge milestone in the development of eth2 – if Medalla proves stable, mainnet launch is next – and represents years of hardwork by countless engineers, researchers, and community members. We hope you are as excited as we are :).”
It is worthy of note that the Medalla testnet does not involve any real ether (ETH), nor does it allow validators to earn any profit. Rather, the testnet is essentially a trial performance to ensure the ETH ecosystem is ready for the ETH 2.0 upgrade expected to go-live in November this year.
According to data from Beaconcha.in block explorer, more than 20,000 validators have joined the network with over 650,000 ETH staked. Notably, the network also witnessed participation from five clients, namely: Prysmatic Labs’ Prysm, Chainsafe’s Lodestar, PegaSys’ Teku, Status’ Nimbus, and Sigma Prime’s Lighthouse.
Getting Ready for ETH 2.0
The launch of ETH 2.0 is perhaps the most anticipated event in the crypto community in the near term. In that regard, the Ethereum ecosystem is leaving no stones unturned to ensure the seamless transition of the network to the proof-of-stake (PoS) consensus algorithm.
As reported by BTCManager on July 24, crypto custody platform Trustology unveiled its plans to offer ETH 2.0 staking support to institutional investors.
On a recent note, the Ethereum Foundation announced that it is setting up a security team ahead of the protocol’s staking upgrade.
At press time, ETH trades at $391.65 with a market cap of over $43 billion as seen on CoinGecko.