For months, even years, members of the Ethereum community have been waiting for the 2.0 iteration of the blockchain.

While the current version of Ethereum — the one that now houses 33 of the top 33 tokens in the cryptocurrency industry, as observed by Justin Drake — has been successful, the upgrade is believed to have potential. So much potential that some believe Ethereum will reach a point where no other smart contract platforms will be able to hold a candle to it.

Last year, at Token2049 in March, Buterin told an audience in Hong Kong that once the upgrade is fully rolled out, Ethereum will be a “next-generation blockchain” that is hundreds of times faster and more scalable than the current iteration.

And at long last, it’s finally drawing near.

Ethereum 2.0 Testnet Gets Nearly 20,000 Validators In Days’ Time

Over the past few days, blockchain development team Prysmatic Labs rolled out its latest project, the “Topaz” testnet for Ethereum 2.0 software, whose earliest phase (phase 0) has recently been audited. Topaz is now the leading testnet for Ethereum.

The testnet’s launch has gone unnoticed. According to Etherscan data as of April 20th, there are already 18,667 active validators on the network, with nearly 1,000 more vying for a spot. Validators replace miners in Ethereum 2.0, and are required to stake a minimum of 32 Ether to verify transactions and receive rewards as a result.

The Ethereum community has been, let’s say, over the moon about the launch of the testnet.

Vitalk Buterin, the creator of Ethereum, explained that he thinks that while he doesn’t think that that the Topaz configuration is “THE Multiclient Testnet™,” he sees its launch as “huge progress” and “excellent work” by the team behind it.

Mainnet-configuration eth2 testnet. Note that this is likely not quite yet "THE Multiclient Testnet™", as we are likely going to do one or two restarts soon to have more chances to test the genesis mechanism. But still, huge progress and excellent work by @prylabs https://t.co/EmUNnOoL6Q — vitalik.eth (@VitalikButerin) April 14, 2020

Others, too, have expressed their excitement, sharing images of their systems running the validator software of the Topaz testnet, with others simply remarking they’re extremely happy about this news.

Should all go well, it is expected for Ethereum 2.0 to be rolled out in the coming three months or so.

Launch of Ethereum 2.0 Will Create “The Largest Economic Shift In Society”

Although Ethereum 2.0 is not even launched, analysts have already tried to speculate as to the effect of the upgrade on the price of Ether.

Partner at Metacartel Ventures, Adam Cochran, came out with a 50-part Twitter thread about how a full roll-out of the upgrade could dramatically increase Ether’s price. Although a long-winded answer, to say the least, his Ethereum bull case boiled down to four core ideas:

Ethereum validators to cause a supply shock: With the introduction of validators, many investors will rush to buy 32 Ether to stake their assets to earn a return on their holdings. Cochran estimated that 10 to 30 million Ether could be taken off the open market, resulting in a dramatic supply shock.

With the introduction of validators, many investors will rush to buy 32 Ether to stake their assets to earn a return on their holdings. Cochran estimated that 10 to 30 million Ether could be taken off the open market, resulting in a dramatic supply shock. Retail investors will flood into the market: Due to this supply shock, retail investors, which are what primarily drove up the crypto market in 2017, are likely to start investing as well, creating an even greater supply shock.

Due to this supply shock, retail investors, which are what primarily drove up the crypto market in 2017, are likely to start investing as well, creating an even greater supply shock. Fundamental demand for Ether will increase: To add to this, due to the fundamental improvements that Ethereum 2.0 will roll out, Cochran expects the market to start to scoop up lots of Ether for fundamental reasons, like to work with contracts, to use in decentralized finance, etc.

To add to this, due to the fundamental improvements that Ethereum 2.0 will roll out, Cochran expects the market to start to scoop up lots of Ether for fundamental reasons, like to work with contracts, to use in decentralized finance, etc. Ether could be burned: Finally, there’s a proposal that Ether should be burned when transactions take place, which would only exacerbate the supply-demand dynamics in favor of bulls.

All these trends working in tandem will result in the “blue diamond going up,” as Cochran fittingly put it, referencing the Bitcoin community’s joke of “orange coin goes up.”