Ethereum (ETH) is the doomed number two among crypto assets. Whether it will ever dethrone the number one Bitcoin (BTC) is the big question, but despite that it is still the favorite of many. In this article we list a number of striking Ethereum facts that you may not have known.
ETH was founded by a teenager
You probably know that Vitalik Buterin is the creator and founder of Ethereum. But did you know that he was only 19 years old when he came up with the concept? Yes. He was born in 1994. In 2013 Buterin came up with the idea of Ethereum. A year later he convinced Dr. Gavin Wood, and together they founded the Ethereum network.
The transition to proof-of-stake
Since the birth of Ethereum, it has always used a proof-of-work system. Such as Bitcoin and Dogecoin (DOGE). However, since September last year, Ethereum has made the historic transition to a proof-of-stake system. Ether is no longer mined to validate transactions. Instead, Ether is staked in validator nodes that keep the network running.
Ethereum underwent one fork in 2016
In 2016, the Ethereum network was split in two. This happened after a significant hack in which 33 percent of the capital was lost. After the fork, the lost capital was recovered. However, not everyone was happy with this split. Those continued to use the old chain. Today, that old blockchain is still active, and you may have heard about it: Ethereum Classic.
The scalability problem of Ethereum
While Ethereum is a popular choice for investors, its everyday use is less realistic. A big dream of Vitalik Buterin is therefore that one day Ether can be used as a means of payment. However, the network is not fast enough for this. Transactions must be properly checked to ensure security. As a result, transactions take a relatively long time and the costs can be quite high.
A lot of protocols have now been developed on top of the Ethereum network that solve this problem. These are ‘layer-2 solutions’. Examples include Polygon (MATIC) and Arbitrum (ARB). These protocols use the Ethereum network, but they process transactions much faster and cheaper.
Charles Hoskinson is a co-founder of Ethereum
He can be found regularly in the news; the founder of the Cardano (ADA) network, Charles Hoskinson. But you may not have known that Hoskinson is also a co-founder and former CEO of Ethereum.
However, after an argument between Buterin and Hoskinson, the latter left and started his own network Cardano. The reason for the argument was that Hoskinson wanted to go commercial with Ethereum. However, according to Buterin, the network had to remain non-profit.
Vitalik Buterin is now the ‘last man standing’ of the group that originally founded the Ethereum network.
