Crypto exchange Binance has announced preparatory steps for the Ethereum Merge – expected to take place between September 10 and September 20 – in a bid to protect user funds and lower trading risks from price volatility.
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The steps include a suspension of deposits and withdrawals for ether and ERC-20 tokens, first at 11 a.m. UTC on September 6 and again at midnight UTC on September 15.
Borrowing of ether, along with deposits and withdrawals for Binance’s tokenized asset for staked ether will also be suspended from midnight UTC on September 14 and is estimated to resume at midnight UTC on September 16.
However, other services such as spot and margin trading, futures trading, Binance Card, and Binance Pay will not be affected.
The crypto exchange detailed two scenarios about the merge: one where no new token is created and one where Ethereum splits into two competing chains, which will lead to a new token.
In the case of the second scenario, Binance will credit user accounts with the new token at a ratio of 1:1, with withdrawals for the forked token supported as well. The new token will also be subject to the crypto firm’s listing review process.
The Ethereum Merge is to bring together the existing execution layer of Ethereum – the mainnet in use today – with its proof-of-stake consensus layer, the Beacon Chain. The effort aims to replace energy-intensive mining in favor of securing the network with staked ether.
Binance recently ceased its off-chain fund transfer channel with Indian crypto exchange WazirX, following an investigative probe into the latter.
See also: The tech mogul backing Binance’s Malaysia breakthrough
Editing by Miguel Cordon and Lorenzo Kyle Subido
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