The Merge Q&A: A triumph for Ethereum — or a disaster waiting to happen?

cointelegraph.com:

Within a matter of weeks, the Ethereum blockchain is going to undergo the Merge, in one of the biggest and riskiest upgrades in the industry's history: a switch from a Proof-of-Work consensus algorithm to Proof-of-Stake.

XGo's head of product Josh Cowell explains what the much-anticipated Ethereum Merge is all about  — and some of the big questions that currently remain unanswered.

1. Hello! Before we delve into all things Ethereum, tell us about XGo.

Hello! We're a bunch of crypto enthusiasts and founded XGo to restore crypto's original goals and principles beyond making money (or losing it!) fast. We have a sophisticated web trading suite and staking offering live — but this isn't our only focus, and there's much more in the pipeline.

2. Can you tell us more about the history and motivations of the Merge? 

Ethereum went live in July 2015 — and fast forward to now, ETH is the world's second-largest cryptocurrency. 

Just like Bitcoin, the network currently uses a Proof-of-Work consensus model to secure the blockchain. This means that crypto miners are running machines to crunch numbers in an attempt to validate transactions and earn ETH rewards. It requires a lot of energy to run — and flies in the face of decentralization because of how it's controlled by a few larger, more sophisticated mining operations.

There have been many improvements within the lifetime of the Ethereum chain, but the upcoming Merge is most probably the most anticipated blockchain upgrades to date. It'll mark the network's move to Proof-of-Stake — and while this move was being considered even before Ethereum went live, it's taken over eight years to get here.

This new chain will be secured by staking validators. These are pools of individuals who stake