Coinbase says it will ‘evaluate any potential forks’ following the Merge

Cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase has updated its information related to Ethereum transitioning to proof-of-stake to include forks that could arise.

In a Thursday update to an Aug. 16 blog post, Coinbase said it would evaluate any potential forks in the Ethereum blockchain on a “case by case basis.” The crypto exchange previously said it planned to ‘briefly pause’ Ether (ETH) and ERC-20 token deposits and withdrawals during the Merge, expected to occur between Sept. 10 and 20.

“Should an ETH PoW fork arise following The Merge, this asset will be reviewed with the same rigor as any other asset that is listed on our exchange,” said Coinbase.

Rest assured, all potential forked tokens of Ethereum, including PoW forks, will go through the same strict listing review process that is done for any other asset listed on our exchange.

— Coinbase Assets (@CoinbaseAssets) August 25, 2022

Exchanges and crypto firms dealing in ETH have made announcements informing clients of any preparations needed ahead of the Merge from proof-of-work, or PoW, to proof-of-stake, or PoS. Many expect the blockchain’s energy consumption to drop precipitously, scalability to improve, and the network will be less vulnerable to attacks.

It’s unclear how crypto users might respond to a forked PoW token listed on Coinbase or any crypto exchange as Ethereum transitions. On Wednesday, the platfor launched an ERC-20 token that will allow customers to use staked ETH while earning rewards, cbETH.

Related: Bug bounty quadruples for Ethereum network — Up to $1M payouts ahead of Merge

Binance also said on Thursday it could offer support for new tokens created by a potential hard fork but would “not guarantee any listings” without a review process. BitMEX made a similar announcement on Aug. 8, adding the offering was “highly speculative” and “might never exist.”