Ethereum’s Merge narrative fuels LDO, ETC, OP price rally, will it last?

Ethereum Merge announcement fueled a rally in several layer-1 cryptos including Lido Dao (LDO), Ethereum Classic (ETC) and Optimism (OP). Analysts have evaluated whether the rally in these cryptocurrencies is sustainable, as the Merge draws closer. 

Also read: How high could Ethereum price go with Triple Halving

Lido (LDO), Ethereum Classic (ETC), Optimism (OP) gain from Merge

Ethereum Merge has fueled a rally in Lido Dao (LDO), Ethereum Classic (ETC) and Optimism (OP). These cryptocurrencies posted massive gains in the past two weeks, riding on the Merge’s success. The successful Goerli testnet fueled a bullish sentiment among Ethereum holders regarding the outcome of the Merge. This had a positive impact on the prices of PoW network Ethereum Classic (ETC). 

Vitalik Buterin supported the Ethereum Classic (ETC) network and recommended users or network participants who prefer the proof-of-work consensus mechanism to move to the chain. ETC developers criticized the proposal to fork the Ethereum chain and wrote an open letter, asking network participants on the ETH chain to refrain from a proof-of-work fork. The letter was addressed to Chandler Guo and explained why a pow fork won't work. Find the open letter below: 

Open letter from ETC Cooperative to Chandler Guo and ETH supporters

Developers on the Ethereum Network expect no further delays in the event. The Merge is expected to go live on September 19, 2022. Ethereum price jumped in response to the announcement, climbing towards the $2,000 target. ETH hit its highest level in two months, after the Goerli update.

Since Lido DAO is a leading staking service in terms of Total Value Locked inside Merge’s official smart contract. Lido has poured 4.15 million ETH in the ETH2 contract and staked nearly 1.55 million ETH on behalf of their clients.

Therefore Lido DAO posted nearly 15% gains within the past two weeks. LDO is currently on a decline, posting nearly double-digit losses overnight. 

Ethereum Classic becomes bull magnet 

With its proof-of-work consensus mechanism, Ethereum Classic has grabbed the attention of bulls in recent weeks with the Merge drawing close. Vitalik Buterin’s recommendation and the growing infrastructure on ETC made it an investor’s favorite. ETC posted 20.6% gains over the past week. 

The PoW network is currently a refuge for miners on the Ethereum network. As the Merge draws close it becomes likely that the event will get priced in, therefore the rally may not be all that sustainable. However, the likelihood of a continued uptrend remains high given miners have the option of migrating to ETC. 

ETH-USD price chart 

Ethereum’s layer-2 solution Optimism (OP) offers gains to holders

Optimism, an Ethereum roll-up service that aggregates mass transaction data, has posted 10% gains over the past two weeks. The layer-2 solution could benefit from Ethereum’s roadmap that is largely roll-up centric for scalability and efficiency. OP price offered holders 250% gains since the announcement of Ethereum’s transition to proof-of-stake. 

Analysts have set a bullish target of $2.245 for OP price. Since OP price crossed the $1.54 level, the altcoin is set to bounce higher and rally towards $2.245 in its uptrend. 

OP-USDT price chart