Billionaire investor and entrepreneur Mark Cuban says that he is “very bullish” on the upcoming Ethereum upgrade that will transition the network towards greater energy efficiency.
Cuban is the majority owner of the professional basketball team Dallas Mavericks, as well as one of the “sharks” on the highly popular reality show “Shark Tank” (which is aired on the ABC television network).
The upgrade, dubbed “The Merge,” is expected to be released later this summer, marking a transition for the blockchain towards greater sustainability and infrastructure improvements. Speaking in an interview with Fortune, Cuban called the upgrade an important step for the future of Ethereum.
Cuban highlighted the benefit of upgrading Ethereum’s consensus mechanism from proof-of-work (PoW) to proof-of-stake (PoS). He said the transition would make Ethereum more environmentally friendly, especially when compared to Bitcoin and other digital assets still operating on proof-of-work.
The transition will reduce the amount of electricity validators consume to maintain the network, with some estimates saying the energy requirements will drop by 99% with proof-of-stake.
Cuban also noted that the “Merge” upgrade should translate into increased scarcity for Ethereum, as fewer coins will be minted over time. The billionaire also expects Ethereum to receive a greater amount of institutional interest following the upgrade.
Cuban told Fortune Ethereum resembles early-stage internet, with massive potential to expand its user base and use cases in the coming years. The Shark Tank regular said that comparisons to the early days of the internet are what “changed the game” and got him excited about Ethereum.
Disclaimer
The views and opinions expressed by the author, or any people mentioned in this article, are for informational purposes only, and they do not constitute financial, investment, or other advice. Investing in or trading cryptoassets comes with a risk of financial loss.
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