Ethereum will get an update. Here’s what you need to know.
EDIT: The Ethereum network upgrade discussed in this article was originally planned for January 16th. Due to a delay, it is now scheduled to occur on February 28th around 1 PM Eastern Time with block number 7,280,000.
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You may have heard that the Ethereum network is getting an update next week in the form of a hard fork called Constantinople.
What should I do as a Shakepay customer? 😎
If you own ETH, you do not need to do anything to prepare for this update.
Will Shakepay support the update? ✅
Shakepay will be supporting the Constantinople update. All future ETH transactions will occur on the new forked version of the Ethereum blockchain.
How does this affect me? 🧐
Transactions to add and send ETH will be halted for a few hours on February 28th, 2019, around 1 PM Eastern Time.
Purchases and sales made with ETH during this time will not be affected.
Going forward, all ETH balances on Shakepay will reflect balances on the Constantinople blockchain.
What is a hard fork? 🔧
A hard fork is a large change to the software on which a cryptocurrency operates and can sometimes result in a split of the cryptocurrency into two separate currencies. Ethereum’s hard fork will allow its developers to update the Ethereum network.
Should I be worried? 🙅
There is no need to be worried. Ethereum’s upcoming hard fork is a planned update and it is not contentious. That means that the fork will result in two different blockchains, but there will only be one definite continuing version of Ethereum afterwards.
What can I do if I’m more technical? 🤓
If you like, you can send your balance to your own ETH wallet before the hard fork begins. This will allow you to control the private keys to your ETH and hold or sell any minority fork balances that may arise.
The original pre-fork ETH blockchain will have no more planned updates and this should eventually push its value close to $0.
When will this happen exactly? 🗓️
This update is expected to occur sometime on Thursday, February 28th, 2019 with block 7,279,750. You can see live a countdown here.
As a precaution, all incoming and outgoing ETH/ERC20 transactions will be disabled a couple of hours before up until a couple of hours after this update on the network.
That means that for a few hours, starting Thursday before noon, Eastern Time, you will not be able to make any ETH transactions with your Shakepay wallet.
We hope this has been informative and answers any questions you have about the upcoming update to Ethereum. Please let us know if you have any further questions.
