The Beacon Chain is the foundation of Ethereum 2.0 as it manages and coordinates the staking and validator registry of the new Ethereum 2.0 protocol. Some have referred to it as the pulsating heart that keeps the new blockchain alive and well, operating as optimally and efficiently as any in-demand blockchain ever had.

It’s launch on December 1st, 2020 marked Ethereum’s “Phase 0”, a set of upgrades to the Ethereum network that are set to transition the protocol from being a Proof-Of-Work network, to relying on the Proof-Of-Stake protocol, which has been in the cards for Ethereum ever since its inception in 2016.

Today, the Beacon Chain celebrates its first birthday, and its looking better than ever.

Rough Beginnings

Things weren’t always looking this peachy for Ethereum. There were massive setbacks along the way, and voices across the crypto space saying were starting to doubt that the Beacon Chain would ever actually launch. Despite it all, the much anticipated “Phase 0” of the Ethereum “Proof-Of-Stake” roadmap successfully shipped on December 1st, 2020 and delivered on all fronts. Mainly, it opened a new asset class on the Ethereum network – ETH 2.0 Staking.

Staking Comes To Ethereum

With a successful launch and minimal hiccups, Ethereum staking started becoming more and more widespread, as investors and previous miners alike were being naturally attracted to the fantastic returns that the Beacon Chain was offering for those who deposit 32 ETH during the first few weeks of its inception.

As time went by and Ethereum staking started to look like a safe bet, massive floods of ETH started flowing into the ETH 2.0 staking smart contract and naturally lowering the staking APY, which currently sits at a solid 4.8% per year.

It’s Party Time!

Join the celebration! The EthStaker Discord channel is set to launch an anniversary party, so stay tuned if you’re an Ethereum fan. You can also just look at some data on the Ethereum Beacon Chain explorer and reminisce on how much validators were earning on the 1st week after the chain launched. Wow, that’s… wow.