Ethereum celebrates three years since switching to PoS
Three years ago, Ethereum switched to a proof-of-stake algorithm as part of The Merge update, merging the mainnet with the Beacon Chain. Mining was replaced with staking, reducing energy consumption by ~99.95% and making network operation comparable in cost to a large data center.
The transition lowered participation barriers and strengthened decentralization: the number of validators exceeded 1 million. A 51% attack now requires control of half of the staked ETH. Over 36 million ETH (~$162.4 billion) are locked in the network, representing approximately 30% of the supply.
An attempt to preserve PoW operation through the ETHW fork failed: the token price fell to near zero, and after the Omni Bridge hack in 2022, the community began calling the project "dead." Since The Merge, the ETH price has grown by 176%, from $1,635 to $4,523, and its market capitalization has increased from $180 billion to $536 billion. In August, the coin hit a new all-time high of $4,946.
Over the past three years, the network has undergone a series of updates: Shapella (2023) allowed the withdrawal of staked ETH, Dencun (2024) reduced L2 fees thanks to EIP-4844, and the Pectra upgrade (2025) enabled smart contract wallets and improved network usability.
Monero Block Reorganization
On September 14, the Monero network experienced a reorganization: 18 blocks were reverted, invalidating 117 transactions. The incident began at block 3,499,659, when the Quibic mining pool mined a hidden chain that was longer than the main chain. Nodes automatically recognized it as correct and rewrote history, rolling back previous blocks. Despite the outage, the XMR price rose 6% to $311.
Polkadot sets DOT limit at 2.1 billion
The Polkadot DAO voted to set a hard cap on the token supply of 2.1 billion DOTs. The referendum, titled "Wish for Change," was supported by 81% of participants. This would change the current model, which issued 120 million DOTs annually. Currently, there are approximately 1.52 billion tokens in circulation. The new scheme calls for a gradual reduction in inflation every two years, beginning on March 14, Pi Day.
Since the beginning of 2025, the DOT price has fallen by almost 40%, while competitors, including Solana and Ethereum, have shown growth, and ETH even reached a new ATH. This weak performance has sparked debate in the community: initiatives to strengthen the token, including using DOTs to purchase tBTC, were proposed, but the project was deemed technically unfeasible.
In August, Polkadot co-founder Gavin Wood rejoined Parity, and the launch of Polkadot Capital Group was announced. The new division is focused on attracting institutional investment and strengthening DOT's position in traditional capital markets.
Ethereum Fusaka hard fork launches on December 3
The Fusaka hard fork will activate on the Ethereum mainnet on December 3, developers announced during a call with AllCoreDevs.
Before launch, the upgrade will be tested on the Holesky, Sepolia, and Hoodi testnets from early October to mid-November. The main goal of the upgrade is to improve network scalability and efficiency. The key innovation will be the PeerDAS protocol (EIP-7594), which is expected to at least double throughput.
The Ethereum Foundation has launched a four-week Fusaka audit with a $2 million prize pool to identify potential vulnerabilities before the release. The next major upgrade will be Glamsterdam, scheduled for 2026. It will aim to further improve the scalability, security, and usability of Ethereum.
BNB investor turns $1,000 into $1 million
Lookonchain analysts reported on a long-term BNB investor who managed to increase his capital 1,000-fold as the cryptocurrency reached a new all-time high.
In 2017, he purchased 999 BNB for approximately $1,000, when the token was valued at around $1. On September 18, the coin's price exceeded $1,000 for the first time, bringing his investment to $1 million. This growth was driven by the Federal Reserve's rate cut and news of Binance's impending exit from US regulatory oversight.
The community speculated that the successful investor may be connected to the APX project team. Interest in the coin was also boosted by news of the launch of the Aster decentralized exchange on BNB Chain, backed by Binance founder Changpeng Zhao.
Solana co-founder expresses concern over quantum threat to Bitcoin
Solana co-founder Anatoly Yakovenko called for accelerating the implementation of quantum-resistant solutions for Bitcoin security, emphasizing that computing technology development could accelerate faster than expected.
In the All-In Summit 2025 podcast, he stated that he estimates the likelihood of a major breakthrough in this area in the next five years at 50%. He believes the main signal for the transition to new algorithms will be the adoption of quantum-resistant cryptography by major tech corporations.
Yakovenko also noted that Bitcoin has already proven resilient to current risks. Even the possible collapse of companies with large BTC reserves, like Strategy, could cause market turmoil, but does not threaten the asset itself due to its decentralization.
He also emphasized that the Proof-of-Work algorithm remains a reliable defense against coordinated attacks and large-scale hacks.
