Since the Merge, which shifted Ethereum from the energy-intensive Proof-of-Work consensus mechanism to the eco-friendly Proof-of-Stake consensus mechanism, the cryptocurrency has experienced a significant drop in its native token, burning 104,939.20 ETH, equivalent to over $200 million in current market value. This corresponds to a 0.146% decline in the yearly supply of ETH, and if Ethereum had continued to rely on miners to secure the network, the supply of Ether would have grown by over 2.5 million coins, translating to a staggering $4.9 billion in the current market value. The reduction in ETH supply was implemented through Ethereum Improvement Proposal 1559, which was rolled out via the London upgrade in August 2021. Despite this, the total supply of ETH has increased by 3.21 million coins since the upgrade was implemented, but the trend of declining supply is expected to continue in the coming months.

(By Arnold Kirimi)