After a difficult start, preparations for the launch of Ethereum 2.0 are seeing a significant increase in interest. More than half of the ETH required for network deployment has been deposited into the deposit agreement. Will Ethereum 2.0 go live before 2021?

Ethereum 2.0 deployment is getting closer

Driven by a rapid and continuous rise in the price of Ether (ETH) in recent days, the launch of Ethereum 2.0 is approaching. More than half of the Ethers needed for the deployment of the network are now in the deposit contract.

At the time of this writing, 294,336 ETH has been deposited into the contract, or nearly $ 170 million . The launch of ETH 2.0 will take place when an additional 229,952 ETH has been deposited, making a total of 524,288 ETH .

The graphic below speaks for itself. The amount of ETH deposited in the contract has increased dramatically since November 19, from almost 100,000 ETH to almost 300,000 ETH.

This rapid increase in the number of ETH engaged is done in parallel with the increase in the price of ETH, which went from $ 470 to $ 585 in 3 days:

Ethereum 2.0 Stacked total value

In addition, Ethereum 2.0 will only see the light of day if 16,384 validators join the network in its early stages. This second prerequisite is also in a good mood to be reached. As of this writing, 8,834 validators are already ready , with a minimum of 32 ETH deposited each.

Like the number of ETH deposited, the number of validators almost tripled in just 3 days, from 3,000 to almost 9,000:

A launch before 2021 thanks to whales?

The whales of ETH are partly responsible for this rapid progression. According to a report by Bison Trails , a very wealthy whale deposited 17,088 ETH on November 14, which had been dormant in her wallet from 2017 until they were deposited into the contract.

In addition, even leading investment funds participate. This is particularly the case of a Dubai-based company, IBC Group , which deposited more than 20,000 ETH in the contract to support the launch of Ethereum 2.0.

In addition, Vitalik Buterin himself made a strong contribution, depositing 3,200 ETH as soon as the deposit contract was available to all. A gesture by the founder of the network that will most certainly have motivated Ethereum followers to follow him.

Originally scheduled for December 1 , the launch of phase 0 of Ethereum 2.0 is probably postponed for the current of the same month. If the deposits in the contract are growing at the same rate, a launch in mid-December seems plausible. Indeed, as soon as the 524,288 ETH is deposited in the contract, the launch of Ethereum 2.0 will occur 7 days later .