Quick take:
- Existing NFTs on the Ethereum Proof-of-Work chain will no longer be supported on OpenSea after the Merge.
- A number of crypto and NFT platforms have already begun preparing for the Merge.
- OpenSea competitor LooksRare is also taking the same stance.
NFT marketplace leader Opensea will only support NFTs on the Ethereum Proof-of-Stake (PoS) network after the upcoming Merge, the platform tweeted on Thursday. Expected to occur between Sep 10 and Sep 16, the current Ethereum mainnet will merge with the Beacon Chain proof-of-stake system, marking the end of Proof-of-Work (PoW) for Ethereum.
The Merge eliminates the need for energy-intensive mining and instead secures the network using staked ETH. Taking a clear stance on shifting to the more environmentally PoS chain which will reportedly reduce Ethereum’s energy consumption by ~99.95%, OpenSea will no longer support existing NFTs on the PoW chain.
“While we won’t speculate on potential forks–to the extent forked NFTs on ETHPoW exist–they won’t be supported or reflected on OpenSea,” the NFT marketplace tweeted.
Besides preparing for the Merge, OpenSea has also integrated Polygon into its Seaport protocol on Wednesday and now supports using MATIC, Polygon’s native token, as a payment option. Users can also list and buy Polygon NFTs at any price, make multiple payouts to creators, purchase NFTs as a gift for another wallet, transfer multiple Polygon NFTs to the same wallet in a single transaction and more.
OpenSea’s competitor, LooksRare, has also published a game plan, stating that it will go into “maintenance mode” shortly before the merge occurs. Just like OpenSea, LooksRare has also made it clear that while forked versions of the Ethereum blockchain may occur (including PoW forks), they will not be supported on the platform.
Other Web3 platforms have also begun making preparations for the Merge. Stablecoin provider Circle has also voiced its sole support for the PoW chain. During the Merge, Coinbase will briefly pause new Ethereum (ETH) and ERC-20 token deposits and withdrawals as a precautionary measure.
However, Coinbase and Binance said that they would be open to listing tokens on the PoW fork after the Merge, should it arise. The planned fork, known as ETHPoW, aims to split from the Ethereum mainnet after its transition to PoS.
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