Coinbase CEO Confirms Major Bitcoin Upgrade as Ethereum Supports Earthquake in $2.4B Price
Bitcoinbitcoin and ethereum ethereum – the two biggest cryptocurrencies – have surged higher so far this year, with traders nervously eyeing further volatility ahead.
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Bitcoin price has climbed around 70% since the start of 2023, while ethereum price is up 50%, putting the crypto at a “pivotal moment”.
Now CoinbaseCOIN CEO Brian Armstrong has confirmed that the major US bitcoin and crypto exchange will integrate bitcoin’s Lightning Network, designed to help it scale, as ethereum rushes towards the Shanghai upgrade, allowing users to withdraw their staked ethereum.
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“Lightning is great and something we want to integrate,” Armstrong told a Twitter user who had questioned why the Coinbase founder had never posted about the technology without specifying when the San Francisco-based exchange would add support for the bitcoin upgrade.
The Lightning Network, a so-called layer-2 solution that sits on top of the bitcoin blockchain, was first proposed by two academics in 2016 to help facilitate cheaper and faster bitcoin transactions that happen away from bitcoin’s main layer and let the cryptocurrency become better. compete with ethereum, other emerging cryptocurrencies and traditional payment networks such as VisaV.
The confirmation that Coinbase will follow other bitcoin and crypto exchanges in supporting the Lightning Network has been welcomed by the bitcoin and crypto community.
“Looking forward to seeing Lightning support on Coinbase,” Gabor Gurbacs, a crypto entrepreneur and advisor to Chief Investment Officer VanEck, posted to Twitter. “Bitfinex has done a great job with Lightning in the past.”
Meanwhile, analysts expect ethereum’s Shanghai upgrade this week to put pressure on the market as the nearly 1.3 million ethereum currently “staked” on the network is unlocked. Staked ethereum has allowed holders to help secure the ethereum network in return for rewards.
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“1.1 million ethereum related to partial reward withdrawals can meet the market, while Celsius [Network] is likely to sell its 158,000 stake balance as part of the bankruptcy process,” analysts at K33 Research said in a note to clients seen by Coindesk this week. “These two numbers represent nearly 1.3 million Ethereum or about $2.4 billion worth of potential sell-side pressure to meet the market.”
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