What Happened: The upcoming merge event will force Ethereum miners to seek alternate forms of income streams, JPMorgan analysts in a recent report (h/t CoinDesk).

ETH miners profitability will likely take a hit following the network’s transition from proof-of-work (PoW) to proof-of-stake (PoS), the analysts explained. A sudden influx of large mining pools into mining a different cryptocurrency could add further pressure to profit margins.

Since ETH miners use ASIC mining equipment to mine the crypto asset, they are left with little to no choice in terms of alternative blockchains to migrate to.

“Ethereum Classic (ETC) miners could be among the main beneficiaries of the switch,” stated JPMorgan in the report.

The analysts highlighted how the increased hashrate on the Ethereum Classic network in recent weeks is a sign that a miner migration is already underway. Some investors already view ETC as a “hedge against any potential disruptions in the Ethereum blockchain during the shift from PoW to PoS.”

See Also: Ethereum Classic (ETC) Rally Pushes Short Liquidations To $9M

“Earnings are going to be painful in coming quarters as Ethereum moves away from Nvidia GPU mining,” according to analysis from SeekingAlpha.