Ethermine, the largest Ethereum mining pool, has announced the launch of a new ETH staking service that allows members to collectively stake their ETH and earn 4.43% interest annually. The new staking service allows users to earn additional income on their ETH deposits.
Members will need at least 0.1 ETH (which is approximately $159) to participate in the new ETH stake service. However, the betting service will not be available to US miners.
The new ETH staking service comes ahead of the much-anticipated Ethereum merge, which is expected to take place on September 15th.
Ethermine’s New ETH Staking Pool
As of press time, 393 Ether (worth approximately $626,000) had been invested in the new ETH staking pool.
Such staking pools offer competitive interest rates and lower barriers to entry than a single staking pool, which requires node operators to stake at least 32 ETH.
The switch to offering staking services is a big step for Ethermine, which is largely known for operating a multi-currency mining pool that offers members Ethereum (ETH), Ethereum Classic (ETC), Zcash, Ravecoin and more. (RVN), ergo (ERGO), and beam (BEAM).
It is important to note that once the much-anticipated Ethereum merge upgrade takes place, Ethereum mining will no longer be required, as is required by the proof-of-work consensus mechanism Ethereum currently uses. After the merger, Ethereum will move to a Proof-of-Stake (PoS) consensus mechanism that is geared towards staking instead of mining.