Ethereum, the second largest cryptocurrency after bitcoin, has skyrocketed over the past year, heading alongside the surging price of bitcoin.
The price of bitcoin has surpassed the highs at the end of 2017 of around $ 20,000 per bitcoin, going up to nearly $ 60,000 in recent weeks, while the price of etther ether tokens has also risen into new land – up 30% from the 2018 high.
Now, a proposed update to the ethereum blockchain to destroy (or “burn”) ether tokens could cause ethereum to become more “sound” than bitcoin, according to ethereum cofounder Vitalik Buterin.
The price of both bitcoin and ethereum has gone up in recent months, climbing to full-time highs as … [+]
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The Ethereum update, called EIP-1559 and part of a broader move towards ethereum 2.0, will review the network’s current trading tax system, with users charging to the network itself instead of the so-called miners who maintain the network. These taxes will then be burned, reducing total ether supply – something that is in itself a controversial topic among the cryptocurrency community.
“If bitcoin is a good currency and its supply is fixed, then if you have a reduced supply, do so. [ethereum] ultrasound money, “Buterin asked, referring to a recent program of a Tim Ferriss Show podcast with Naval tech investor Ravikant.” Sound money “cites the stability and convenience of currency as a source of value.
Although Buterin called the issue a “joke” he went on to explain that there is a special potential for the radical upgrade of the ethereum network, which was agreed with developers this week. last and expected to be used in July, a decline in ethereum supply.
“If demand for the use of ethereum is high enough, there would actually be more [ether] to be destroyed is what creates it, “Buterin said.” In fact, it’s not even that far away. If you look at the trading fees for the last month, they have been on many days more than the block profits for that day. “
The recent price rally of ethereum, which sees ethereum adding 400% since the bitcoin and cryptocurrency market began in October, comes amid rising interest in decentralized finance (DeFi) – using cryptocurrency technology to traditional financial instruments such as loans and interest.
With many of the largest DeFi projects built on top of the ethereum blockchain, the token has gone up as users flood the network. At the same time, the latest cryptocurrency losses for so-called non-fungible tokens (NFTs) have also led to heavy traffic on the underlying ethereum network.
When Ravikant warned that these claims could be built on top of ethereum to suffer from “hacks … break-ins and fail,” Buterin named the controversial, price-pegged one-to-one cryptocurrency pegged tent. one with the US dollar, as a “ticking time bomb [demon]”for bitcoin – highlights the long competition between the two largest blockchain ecosystems.
The latest ethereum price rally has raised its price above the highs in early 2018 – with … [+]
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While most miners seem to be on board with ethereum ‘s planned update, some – including ethereum’ s main mining group SparkPool – have recorded the face.
“I am concerned about a potential revolution by the miners, which could weaken the credibility of the ethereum network,” Richard Johnson, chief executive of Texture Capital, said by email. Johnson said it is “doubtful” whether the update will have a “significant” impact on ethereum fees that have risen sharply over 10-fold in the past 12 months.
Amid the chase on ethereum, a number of ethereum competitors have emerged in recent months, claiming to offer decentralized platforms like faster trading times and lower fees and is looking to take advantage of ethereum problems.
“In the current crypto bull run, ethereum seems to be suffering from its own success,” Antoni Trenchev, managing director at Nexo’s digital asset manager, said in an emailed comment. . “The sheer number of users, developers, decentralized apps, DeFi protocols, coupled with the ever-growing NFT crack is storming the blockchain, making it very dense.”
However, Trenchev added that he intends to “get a glimpse of that real bull running soon after the EIP-1559 release, with the hammer of the real bulls coming down with ethereum 2.0.”