Ethereum: Merge, Sell-Off, Or Rally? Time To Place Your Bets

SummaryEthereum is two weeks away from the much-awaited merge.The cryptocurrency has rallied strongly in the last month but is now selling off.The upcoming merge will certainly bring about volatility but also a welcome trading opportunity.Thesis SummaryWith the Ethereum (ETH-USD) merge right around the corner, investors are beginning to place their bets on the outcome. There are at least three possible scenarios, if not more, and specific financial instruments have been designed for betting on any of these outcomes.In this article, I look at the history of Ethereum's forks to try to gain some insight into what could happen and lay out my expectations as to what will happen to Ethereum in the short and long run after the merge.Playing The OddsThe Ethereum merge is set for the 15-16th of September and will mark a historical change in the crypto world. Ethereum, the world's second-largest cryptocurrency and the most used blockchain for decentralised apps, will switch its consensus mechanism from Proof-of-Work to Proof-of-Stake.This change will have numerous implications, many of which I discussed in my previous Ethereum article. For example, miners will become obsolete, previously staked Ethereum will be released, and the whole ecosystem will be affected, with the "power" now in the hands of large ETH holders instead of miners. On the other hand, the merge should also lead to better efficiency and lower transactions.With that sai...