New Delhi: The recent crypto market crash has dragged a number of cryptocurrencies sharply lower, with many of them trading at less than half their prices from peaks.

One such example is Solana, which enjoyed the title of 'Ethereum Killer' till a few weeks ago. But now, it has lost its mojo.

The digital token has slipped down to the eighth spot among the largest crypto tokens from the fifth position earlier. It has lost two-thirds of its value from the peak of $260 hit last November. The crypto-token was trading around $86.5 on Monday. In the last 24 hours, Solana has tanked more than 17 per cent with its traded volume down about 25 per cent in the given period. The volume in this token has remained low off late.

Shivam Thakral, CEO of BuyUcoin, a homegrown cryptocurrency exchange, said Solana network faced a major outage and was down for almost 48 hours. "The issue was resolved on Sunday but the damage was already done as Solana witnessed heavy liquidations," he said.

Vikas Ahuja, CEO of CrossTower India said that the instability issue was experienced by validators and also many excessive duplicate transactions were noticed according to a notice on the Solana website on January 22.

A point to observe is that Solana has not created a new defined low from a high time frame perspective, indicating that buyers are getting active and preventing a further decline, said Raj A Kapoor, Founder, India BlockChain Alliance.

OUTLOOKSolana could drop to the $78-80 range if the crucial supports are breached and the present signals suggest that the market is headed for the same, thanks to the extremely volatile crypto space, said experts.

However, they said that investors with a 2-3 year horizon will always make a profit in the crypto market. Solana is an attractive buying option at $60-70, they added.

Kapoor of India Blockchain Alliance refrained from giving a long-term estimate but advised to stay invested in the token and buy it on dips.

Currently, Solana is commanding a market cap of little more than $27.3 billion, which was around $80 billion during its golden days. Its market cap is marginally ahead of Terra ($25.5 billion).

Gaurav Dahake, Co-founder & CEO, Bitbns said the overstressed beta version is one of the reasons for this fall in Solana and is expected to be resolved in a short time. Although there is more to be expected in terms of price going downwards, he said.

Solana is a highly functional open source project that banks on blockchain technologys permissionless nature to provide decentralized finance (DeFi) solutions.

The idea and initial work on the Solana project began in 2017 and the token was officially launched in March 2020 by the Solana Foundation with headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland. Solana is a layer 1 token which is the base layer for cryptocurrencies, including Bitcoin.

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Down 67% from high! Are golden days of this 'Ethereum Killer' over? - Economic Times

Key Takeaways

The Ethereum Foundation has rebranded the terms Ethereum 1.0 and Ethereum 2.0 in order to avoid future confusion. Going forward, they will be known as Ethereums execution layer and consensus layer, respectively.

In a Mondayblog post, the Ethereum Foundation announced that it would retire the terminologies ETH 1.0 and ETH 2.0 in favor of the terms execution layer and consensus layer.

The execution layerformerly known as Ethereum 1.0refers to the Proof-of-Work blockchain that is known today as Ethereum. The Proof-of-Stake Beacon Chain, which is intended to take over consensus processes after the merging of the two blockchains, will henceforth be known as the consensus layer. Taken together, they are to be known collectively as Ethereum.

The critical step in this direction will be the upcoming merge, a future upgrade in which the current Proof-of-Work chain will unite with the Proof-of-Stake Chain. It is scheduled tentatively in June 2022.

Proof-of-Stake is a consensus system requiring validators to stake their funds on the network to validate new transactions. Ethereums move from Proof-of-Work to Proof-of-Stake is intended to enable greater scalability and eventually lower transaction costs.

In the post, the team aired concerns that the existing terms, Ethereum 1.0 and 2.0, have the potential to confuse new usersit wrote that users intuitively think that Eth1 comes first and Eth2 comes after. Or that Eth1 ceases to exist once Eth2 exists. Neither of these is true. Per the team, after the upgrade takes place this year, there will no longer be two distinct networksor even conceptsof ETH 1.0 and ETH 2.0. The two will simply be separate but integral components of the overall network known as Ethereum.

Another critical objective behind the rebranding was the prevention of scams. The team aims to prevent users from getting scammed by malicious entities who have taken advantage of the confusion created by the numerical names for Ethereum Proof-of-Work and Proof-of-Stake chains. Such scams sometimes involve tricking users into believing they must migrate their ETH to ETH 2.0, resulting in lost funds.

Disclosure: At the time of writing, the author of this piece owned ETH and other cryptocurrencies.

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You should never make an investment decision on an ICO, IEO, or other investment based on the information on this website, and you should never interpret or otherwise rely on any of the information on this website as investment advice. We strongly recommend that you consult a licensed investment advisor or other qualified financial professional if you are seeking investment advice on an ICO, IEO, or other investment. We do not accept compensation in any form for analyzing or reporting on any ICO, IEO, cryptocurrency, currency, tokenized sales, securities, or commodities.

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As of today, the Ethereum 2.0 deposit contract contains about 9 million ETH, equivalent to about $30.2 billion. Users Stake $30 Billion For ETH 2.0 9 million ETH have been...

Ethereum has launched its Kintsugi testnet, the latest step toward replacing its Proof-of-Work consensus mechanism with Proof-of-Stake. Kintsugi Is a Step Toward Proof-of-Stake Ethereum Foundation member Tim Beiko posted today...

Vitalik Buterin has published a new piece addressing Ethereum gas fee markets. Specifically, he discussed launching a new multidimensional EIP-1559 update. Vitaik Buterin Makes New Ethereum Proposal Vitalik Buterin has...

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Ethereum Scraps "ETH 2.0" in Roadmap Rebrand - Crypto Briefing

Crypto.com said Thursday that cybercriminals had breached its security systems earlier in the week and made off with more than $30 million in stolen bitcoin and ethereum.

The cryptocurrency exchange Crypto.com, known for its viral commercial starring Matt Damon as well as its recent $700 million deal to rename the Staples Center in Los Angeles as Crypto.com Arena, said the hackers managed to bypass its two-factor authentication system and withdraw the funds from 483 customer accounts, according to a statement the Singapore-based crypto exchange posted Thursday on its corporateblog.

"Unauthorized withdrawals totaled 4,836.26 ETH, 443.93 BTC and approximately US$66,200 in other currencies," the company said in the post.

That works out to around $15 million and $19 million in ethereum and bitcoin, respectively, based on current exchange rates. All customers have been "fully reimbursed" for any lost funds as a result of the hack, Crypto.com said.

The blog statement serves as a postmortem of the hack, which the company said happened Monday. It provides details of the event and the company's detection and response to the cyber breach, as well as its "next steps," but it does not offer information on the identity of the hackers behind the breach.

The timing of Crypto.com's public statement, a full three days after the hack, is viewed by many as belated confirmation. According to an article from CoinDesk on Wednesday, about 4,600 etherium that was reportedly stolen from Crypto.com was "currently being laundered via Tornado Cash an Etherium Mixer." Thursday's blog post also followed a Bloomberg interview Wednesday with Crypto.com Chief Executive Kris Marszalek, in which the CEO acknowledged that approximately 400 customer accounts were hacked.

"Given the scale of the business, these numbers are not particularly material and customer funds were not at risk," the CEO told Bloomberg.

The company first acknowledged something unusual was up in a January 16tweetin which it announced the temporary suspension of withdrawals following user reports of "suspicious activity on their accounts."

"We will be pausing withdrawals shortly, as our team is investigating. All funds are safe," the company said.

The company's claim that "All funds are safe" was quickly challenged by customers, most notably Los Angeles-based jeweler Ben Baller, who immediately tweeted back, "I messaged yah guys hours ago about my account having 4.28ETH stolen out of nowhere and I'm also wondering how they got passed the 2FA?"

Two-factor authentication, or 2FA, is the multistep security system that requires users to provide two distinct forms of identification, such as a one-time passcode in addition to a password, when logging into an online account. The commonly used security measure provides an extra layer of protection against weak passwords such as, say, a surname followed by "123." While used by industries across the board, 2FA is considered a must for digital currency accounts. Monday's breach, however, brings into question the reliability of 2FA in keeping digital assets safe from hackers.

For now, Crypto.com says it is sticking with 2FA, but not for long.

Upon discovery of the breach, the company "revoked all customer 2FA tokens" and used the 14 hours of downtime from withdrawal activity to "revamp," according to the statement. Customers were then "migrated to a completely new 2FA infrastructure," as an additional security measure.

That is only temporary, however, as the company says it plans to ditch 2FA for "true Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA), providing added strength for our global user base."

Shares of Crypto.com have fallen more than 6% since news of the security breach, closing Thursday at 46 cents a share.

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Crypto.com says hackers stole more than $30 million in bitcoin and ethereum - CBS News

ThisJan. 12edition of "The Crypto Show" on Backstage Passhighlighted an interesting discussion of whether Decentraland(CRYPTO:MANA) and other metaverse games could indirectly boost the value ofEthereum(CRYPTO:ETH).Fool.com contributors Chris MacDonald and Jon Quast took on this topic.

Jon Quast:I don't mean to put you on the spot here, but as far as the NFTs go, I know this can be built on various blockchains. Are these built on the Decentraland or is it built on something else like the Ethereum blockchain? I might be asking the wrong question here.

Chris MacDonald: Decentraland is built on the Ethereum blockchain. Each of these metaverse cryptocurrencies have different ways of transacting.

We're going to talk about The Sandbox (CRYPTO:SAND) in a second. But for The Sandbox, they have their own cryptocurrency SAND. We have to use SAND tokens to trade NFTs and with Decentraland, I'm actually not 100% sure. I think the transactions are done in Ethereum but I might be wrong on that. Viewers can correct me if I'm wrong, but it is built on the Ethereum blockchain.

Quast: As Decentraland is adopted, is this also good for Ether?

MacDonald: Well, that's one of the growth arguments for Ether and for the Ethereum network, in general, is that as these metaverse cryptocurrencies built on top of Ethereum, that the value of Ether should grow.

There's a theoretical valuation model, that a token is worth all of the sum aggregate value of all the applications built on top of its network. For Ethereum, projects like Decentraland are really important and we're seeing more interest in these projects. There's an indirect valuation argument that can be made for Ethereum as well for sure.

This article represents the opinion of the writer, who may disagree with the official recommendation position of a Motley Fool premium advisory service. Were motley! Questioning an investing thesis -- even one of our own -- helps us all think critically about investing and make decisions that help us become smarter, happier, and richer.

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Could Decentraland Boost Ethereum's Valuation? - The Motley Fool

Editorial IndependenceWe want to help you make more informed decisions. Some links on this page clearly marked may take you to a partner website and may result in us earning a referral commission. For more information, see How We Make Money.

Its official: The Federal Reserve is toying with the idea of issuing a U.S. digital currency.

In a long-awaited report released last week, the Fed explored the costs and benefits of a government-issued digital currency, but deferred a final decision on whether to move forward. Instead, the Fed is giving the public and other stakeholders until May 20 to share their input before taking further action.

Unlike cryptocurrencies, which are typically created within the private sector and regularly see big price swings, a central bank digital currency (CBDC) would be a digital form of cash thats issued and backed by Americas central bank. However, whatever move the Fed makes next could fortify cryptocurrencies or detract from their value, according to Grant Maddox, a certified financial planner and founder of Hampton Park Financial Planning based in South Carolina. It depends on the direction our government chooses to take, he adds.

The Fed was clear in the report that it wont proceed with the issuance of a CBDC without clear support from the executive branch and from Congress, ideally in the form of a specific authorizing law.

The Fed is attempting to be politically savvy as it weighs a digital dollar, says Salman Banaei, head of public policy in North America for crypto data firm Chainalysis. If the Fed had taken a clear stance on the matter, they would have gotten a lot of political pushback, says Banaei.

Hours after the reports release, and amid the stock markets worst week in nearly two years, Bitcoin and Ethereum saw significant drops. The prices of Bitcoin and Ethereum havent been this low since July.

There are two leading factors influencing the demand for crypto now: its value as an inflation hedge and its value as a risk asset, says Banaei. The perceived likelihood of a crypto future rises or falls based on regulatory risk too.

Heres what experts are saying about the report released this week, and what investors should make of it.

Point of view: Head of public policy in North America for crypto data firm Chainalysis

Reaction: What I was surprised by was how seriously the Fed took the notion of a CBDC. The crypto industry is excited to see that this is happening. A lot of the infrastructure that has been built to support the crypto industry could easily integrate the CBDC into existing providers. But the timeline for a CBDC is going to be far more extended I think its going to take two to four years before we get another major milestone.

Point of view: Host of the Unchained Podcast and author of The Cryptopians: Idealism, Greed, Lies, and the Making of the First Big Cryptocurrency Craze

Reaction: Its not surprising that the Fed would be exploring a central bank digital currency because blockchain technology, although its still being developed, has many advantages over our current analog systems. Plus, it could help the US dollar maintain its global reserve currency status. It already looks like China could try to leverage its digital yuan to chip away at the USDs status as the global reserve currency. Its also not surprising that the Fed is not ready to announce any decision, but are currently just soliciting feedback, because a central bank digital currency raises a lot of questions about security and privacy, plus has the potential to disrupt existing financial institutions.

Point of view: CFP and founder of Hampton Park Financial Planning

Reaction: They are keeping up with the likes of China and others who have advanced in blockchain. A digital U.S. currency may allow for quicker payments to foreign allies, improving our geopolitical outlook. The move could improve monetary policy decisions by allowing for easier distribution. We join about 90 other countries reviewing this option. The addition could add additional complexity to our world markets and distract attention from the dollar.

Point of view: CFP and founder of Insight Financial Strategists

Reaction: Blockchain has plenty of applications that dont have to be a currency, so there are still plenty of things to do in the private sector. I firmly believe that no self-respecting government will give up control of its currencies to a private sector entity. Governments need to retain control of the money supply and of interest rates. Like it or not, these are major tools for managing economies. The U.S. is not the only country thinking of digitizing its currency. China is on its way, too, as are a number of other countries.

While there probably arent any immediate changes crypto investors should make based on the Fed report released this week, its a good reminder that policy makers are paying attention to how perceptions of crypto are taking shape.

The Fed move means that people who were thinking of crypto as actual currency are going to get their bubble popped, says Chen. Many Bitcoin types were thinking that it is a currency and that it would replace traditional currencies. Well, not if the Fed, the European Central Bank, and other central banks have anything to say about it.

The fundamentals of cryptocurrency investing remain the same. Experts say you should stick to the big two cryptocurrencies, Bitcoin and Ethereum, and only invest what youre OK with losing or no more than 5% of your total portfolio. Always prioritize important aspects of your finances, such as saving for emergencies, paying off high-interest debt, and saving for retirement, ahead of cryptocurrency investments. As for where you buy and trade crypto, stick with a mainstream, high-volume cryptocurrency exchange, like Coinbase or Gemini, that proactively complies with evolving federal and state regulators.

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Experts React to the Feds Digital Currency Report and Falling Prices for Bitcoin and Ethereum. Heres What Investors Should Know - NextAdvisor

The Ethereum Foundation, the company behind the development of the Ethereum (CRYPTO: ETH) blockchain ecosystem, sold a significant amount of their ETH holdings at the assets peak price in November 2021.

What Happened: According to a transaction observed on the Ethereum blockchain by Twitter user Edward Morra, on November 11 last year, the Ethereum Foundation cashed out 20,000 ETH on crypto exchange Kraken.

At the time, the second-largest cryptocurrency by market cap was trading at a price of $4,800 and the collective amount sold was worth more than $97 million.

Related Link:Bitcoin, Ethereum, Dogecoin Regain Some Composure Why This Analyst Thinks This Crash Is Not Like The Ones That Came Before It

Ethereum has lost at least 40% of its value since its peak price last year and was trading at under $2,500 at the time of writing.

Morra highlighted that in 2021, the Ethereum Foundation cashed out 35,000 ETH on May 17 incidentally, this was also at the assets previous all-time high and two days before the wider crypto market crashed.

The Ethereum Foundations wallet address is called EthDev and has a total of 353,318 ETH worth $827 million at current prices.

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Ethereum Foundation Sold 20K ETH Worth $97M At Its All-Time High - Benzinga - Benzinga

On this Jan. 12edition of "The Crypto Show" on Backstage Pass,Fool.com contributors Chris MacDonald and Jon Quast discuss volatility in the crypto world, and how to handle this volatility with cryptocurrencies such asBitcoin(CRYPTO:BTC) andEthereum(CRYPTO:ETH).

Jon Quast: Let's kick it off here at the very beginning and let's talk about what's been going on, crypto movements. It's been volatile, Chris.

Chris MacDonald: Yeah. Interestingly, declines in Ethereum have been following the same pattern over recent weeks and we've seen there's a little bit of a recovery in the market today. It's interesting.

We're going to get to some of the inflation data later, but the market is interpreting seven percent inflation as a good thing today. That's interesting. What we're seeing is a recovery across-the-board. Bitcoin has been a little bit less volatile than the other tokens, and I think probably being viewed more as a store of value. We're seeing Bitcoin's volatility, it's up five percent today but down five percent for the week, and Ethereum, it's been a little bit more volatile lately, so we're seeing a bigger increase today and a bigger decrease over the past week, and that's what we've seen in some of the Altcoins, and a lot of the more higher momentum meme tokens and other interesting ones that are grabbing a lot of investors' attention right now.

Jon Quast: It's incredible when you think about it. Bitcoin, I don't know what the exact market cap is right now, but roughly a trillion dollar market capitalization. You look at Ethereum, I believe last I checked somewhere in the ballpark of 500 billion market cap.

Moves like this -- up 10 percent, down 10 percent. It's very, very surprising to me at this stage of the game. We didn't have this in the notes, but I just want to ask, how much sleep are you personally losing over the daily fluctuations of crypto? I'm asking a little bit facetiously.

Chris MacDonald: Well, for me, personally, I've got a small percentage of my portfolio in the crypto in general. For me, the volatility is somewhat expected. I think a lot of people that follow the crypto space or have followed it for a little while know about how volatile these tokens are and expected. I think that's the expectation you have to have going into it that with the returns that these tokens have provided, alongside that comes a lot of volatility.

Over the short-term, these moves are expected, and that goes to the thesis too of, will these ever be true currencies because do you want to get paid in something that goes up double-digit percentage every week or down. You want something a little bit more stable, so we're going to talk about some stablecoins today too. I think that's a little bit of a segue there, but that is an interesting aspect of the crypto world. I think viewers on here have to expect that volatility a little bit.

Jon Quast: Yeah, and definitely, when you are dialed into long-term investing, you really have to lay some of those day-to-day gyrations. You have to lay them to rest, put them out of your mind. Personally, I haven't even checked my cryptocurrency portfolio value in 2022. Because frankly, I know that it's been volatile. I don't want to do that to my own psychology and I'm still hanging on for the long term. The reasons that I invested still apply today, so I don't need to check it personally for my own psychology.

This article represents the opinion of the writer, who may disagree with the official recommendation position of a Motley Fool premium advisory service. Were motley! Questioning an investing thesis -- even one of our own -- helps us all think critically about investing and make decisions that help us become smarter, happier, and richer.

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How to Manage Volatility as Bitcoin and Ethereum Fluctuate Wildly - Motley Fool

What happened

Cryptocurrencies were experiencing a nice rebound on Thursday after feeling pressure earlier in the week. The broader stock market is up, and tech stocks, in particular, are moving higher, which generally helps cryptocurrencies. But the bigger news was about a new venture capital fund being raised by Andreesen Horowitz.

Bitcoin (CRYPTO:BTC) was the biggest cryptocurrency to make a significant gain Thursday: It was up by 4.1% at one point in the last 24 hours and at the time of this writing is trading 3.4% higher. Ethereum (CRYPTO:ETH) rose by as much as 4.8% and is now up 3.9%, while Dogecoin (CRYPTO:DOGE) was up by as much as 4.7% and is currently 2.6% higher. Crypto.com Coin (CRYPTO:CRO) was up by as much as 9% and is currently 8.4% higher for the day.

Image source: Getty Images.

The biggest news on the cryptocurrency front actually came out of Russia, where the country's central bank and the Federal Security Service (FSB) have called for a ban on trading cryptocurrencies, and that ban may extend to mining crypto as well. Many crypto mining operations have set up shop in the country. China was the first major country to ban cryptocurrencies. For numerous reasons, it wouldn't be surprising to see Russia follow a similar path.

Cryptocurrencies would like a bigger global audience, but the market clearly doesn't see Russia's actions as something to worry about right now.

More consequential news came from venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz, which is reportedly interested in raising $4.5 billion for new Web 3.0 and cryptocurrency funds. Initial reports indicate that a $3.5 billion fund will be dedicated to traditional venture investments in companies building for Web 3.0 and the cryptocurrency environment, while $1 billion will be invested in digital tokens.

Andreessen Horowitz has already been one of the most successful cryptocurrency investors to date, and this could solidify its position as the biggest player in this emerging industry.

The news out of Russia is generally a negative for cryptocurrencies, but not surprising. However, I would recommend paying more attention to the moves Andreesen Horowitz makes in the space. The firm has been a key player in helping to build out infrastructure for cryptocurrency and NFT trading, but this investment round could take its involvement to another level.

Long term, the reason I'm bullish on cryptocurrencies generally is the underlying innovation and utility that can be built on these platforms. And the cryptocurrencies that developers are building applications on are the ones that will be successful long term. That's at least one reason the crypto market is moving higher Thursday.

Volatility certainly plays a role as well. The crypto market continues to be volatile, but also correlated with the broader stock market overall. With the market heading higher Thursday, it's not surprising that some of the biggest cryptocurrencies are rising as well.

This article represents the opinion of the writer, who may disagree with the official recommendation position of a Motley Fool premium advisory service. Were motley! Questioning an investing thesis -- even one of our own -- helps us all think critically about investing and make decisions that help us become smarter, happier, and richer.

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Why Bitcoin, Ethereum, Dogecoin, and Crypto.com Coin All Jumped Today - Motley Fool

What happened: $50,427,300 worth of Ethereum (CRYPTO: ETH) was just moved between 2 anonymous cryptocurrency wallets in a single transaction.

This mysterious persons Ethereum wallet address has been identified as: 0xca436e14855323927d6e6264470ded36455fc8bd

$50 million worth of Ethereum was sent to an unknown recipient, with Ethereum wallet address: 0x6571d6be3d8460cf5f7d6711cd9961860029d85f

Why it matters: Cryptocurrency whales that own millions of dollars in Ethereum tend to move markets single-handedly. If the whale decides to exit this Ethereum position, there could be enough market impact to push down the price of ETH. It takes about $15 to $30 million of sell pressure to move the price of Ethereum down 2% on any given exchange.

You can view more details about the transaction here

According to Glassnode, there are 92,262 Ethereum wallets with over $100,000 in ETH.

See Also: Best Crypto Apps 2021 and Best Crypto Portfolio Trackers

Price Action: Ethereum is down -7% in the past 24 hours.

See Also: How To Buy Ethereum

Public Blockchain data sourced from Whale Alerts Twitter.

This article was generated by Benzingas automated content engine and reviewed by an editor.

The rest is here:

Someone Just Sent $50M In Ethereum To An Anonymous Wallet - Benzinga - Benzinga

Ethereum whales are adding altcoins to diversify their portfolio. Analysts are bullish on MATIC price recovery and predict a trend reversal in the altcoin.

The cryptocurrency market suffered a bloodbath today. MATIC price posted 13% losses overnight. The altcoin launched its staking program on Bitfinex, offering the exchange 90 million tokens. Proponents expected a bullish impact on MATIC price after the launch of the staking program.

MATIC network has integrated the proof-of-stake mainnet with FTX. Users can now deposit and withdraw the altcoin on either chain. Therefore, the Polygon network hit two significant milestones with the launch of staking on FTX.

@Trader_XO, a pseudonymous cryptocurrency analyst evaluated the MATIC price trend and predicted a spike in the altcoins price. The analyst believes that there is only one direction for the altcoins price, and that is upward.

@BitQueenBR, a crypto analyst and trader, believes that MATIC price is approaching a trendline that has been respected since 2021. The analyst believes that breaking down the trendline could fuel a bullish narrative; however, if MATIC price breaks previous higher low, the downtrend could continue.

Analysts argue that MATIC price has set a bull trap for traders and expects recovery from altcoins price.

FXStreet analysts believe that MATIC price could fall below critical support. This could drive the altcoin to $1.7, continuing the downtrend.

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Ethereum whales diversify to MATIC as altcoin integrates proof-of-stake mainnet with FTX - FXStreet

If youre a player whos invested some money into their crypto wallet, you might be interested in finding the best Ethereum casinos around.

Ideally you should be on the lookout for some red flags before making your final choice - suspiciously good reviews, slow payout systems, and poor customer support are a few that come to mind.

Were ensuring that our top picks avoid these drawbacks while offering easily redeemable Ethereum casino bonuses, prompt customer support, leading game variety, and more.

mBit Casino was our #1 pick for their generous crypto match and impressive free spin welcome bonus. However, with 12 additional Ethereum casinos on our runners-up list, theres sure to be something for everyone.

Lets take a closer look!

First Look

Best Ethereum Casino Overall - mBit Casino

Best for no-deposit bonus - Bitstarz

Best for slots - 7bit Casino

Best for sports betting - Cloudbet

Best for reload bonus - Slots.lv

Runners-Up:

Bovada

Ignition

Red Dog Casino

Stake.com

Wild Casino

SuperSlots

El Royale

BigSpinCasino

SlotsEmpire

BetOnline

Sportsbetting.ag

MyBookie

Pros

Impressive crypto match with fair playthrough

300 free spins upon first deposit

2, 700+ casino games to enjoy

Instant, fee-free withdrawals

Accepts 6 forms of crypto

Cons

Finding the best Ethereum casino is like finding a needle in a haystack, but it doesnt get better than mBit. Their generous, 110% crypto match (35x playthrough) combined with an assortment of over 2,700 online casino games to enjoy makes mBit a solid choice for our #1 selection.

Gaming Variety: 5/5

Theres zero room to get bored at mBit Casino. They offer 2,700+ casino games to choose from, so no matter how long youve been playing youre sure to find something new and exciting. Among your choices are 1161 specialty slots, 12 poker variants, 12 types of blackjack, 3 kinds of bingo, keno, and over a hundred table games

The only issue we found with their gaming selection was a complete lack of live dealer games, which took us by surprise. However, theres more than enough on mBits menu to make up for this small shortcoming!

Bonuses: 4.8/5

We were very impressed with mBits bonus offering. Theyll match your first deposit 110% up to 13.2 ETH, and theyll give you 300 free spins to boot. The entire package is attached to a challenging but fair 35x playthrough, which means youll be able to earn your bonus back in a reasonable period of time.

Banking: 4/5

Before we say anything else, you should know that fiat currencies are not accepted here. Instead, youre limited to betting with 6 forms of crypto - mBit takes BTC, Ethereum, Bitcoin Cash, Litecoin, Dogecoin, and Tether.

They offer a low deposit minimum of 0.01 ETH (the equivalent of $32), and they provide instant, fee-free withdrawals to your crypto wallet.

Theres not much to complain about here other than their refusal to accept fiat currencies, but if youre an Ethereum enthusiast youll have no problems placing your bets.

Customer Support: 4.5/5

Their customer support team is fantastic, and they offer 24/7/365 assistance to players via live chat, email, and phone. We were able to get a real person on the phone in under 15 minutes, and we got an email reply from them in under 24 hours.

Pros

20 free spins upon sign-up (no deposit)

Instant, fee-free withdrawals for players

Crypto match up to 28 ETH + 180 free spins

Accepts 6 forms of crypto

3,524 games to enjoy

Cons

Fairly high 40x playthrough for all bonus offers

No fiat currencies accepted

No live dealer games in sight

Bitstarz is a solid second pick for our review - aside from being the only Ethereum casino on this list that offers players a no-deposit bonus, you can take advantage of their huge initial crypto match and enjoy a staggering assortment of over 3,500 casino games.

Gaming Variety: 4/5

Bitstarz understands the importance of being able to find something new and exciting to play no matter how long youve been involved with them. Thats why they offer more than 3,500 casino games in total - among them, youll find 840+ slots, several poker and blackjack variants, bingo, baccarat, and a few versions of roulette.

While they fail to offer players live dealer gaming, they make up for it with their otherwise vast selection of slots, table, and specialty games. As Bitstarz continues to update their catalog, you can bet on finding something new to enjoy every time you log on.

Bonuses: 4/5

The casino offers players the opportunity to take advantage of 20 free spins upon making an account. Bitstarz is the only ETH casino on our list to offer a no-deposit bonus! However, when you do make your first deposit, youll receive a 100% match up to 13 ETH along with 180 free spins.

The only downside to speak of here is their comparably high 40x playthrough requirement. Youll earn your bonus back, but it might take more time than absolutely necessary. On the other hand, their no-deposit bonus is pretty sweet and gives you more room to work with.

Banking: 3.7/5

Again, we have to reiterate that no fiat currencies can be used at this casino. Once you get past that, youll be able to bet with 6 forms of crypto. Bitstarz takes Bitcoin, Dogecoin, Litecoin, Ethereum, Bitcoin Cash, and Tether.

They offer a low deposit minimum of 0.01 ETH and an even lower deposit minimum of 0.0002 BTC, which we appreciated. Moreover, they provide instant and fee-free withdrawals to your desired crypto wallet.

Wed like to see them accept fiat currencies eventually, but for Ethereum players, Bitstarz is a great fit.

Customer Support: 5/5

Bitstarz goes above and beyond to provide high-quality customer support for all players. Aside from adhering to the industry standard of 24/7/365 assistance via live chat, email, and phone; they can also be reached on Twitter and Facebook.

Additionally, if theres a lengthy expected hold time when you call their phone line, their automated system will call you back when a real person is available to speak with you. No more listening to terrible elevator music!

Pros

1,200 slots for players to enjoy

Accepts fiat currencies and offers fiat match

65 ETH welcome package over first 4 deposits

Low deposit minimums all around

Instant crypto payouts

Cons

7bit Casino was our obvious pick for slots lovers - 93% of its games comprises of quality slot titles. Its mainly leaning towards crypto-focused online gambling. However, they dont discriminate against fiat currencies and in fact offer a generous deposit matches all around.

Gaming Variety: 3.5/5

This casino may be slots-heavy, but it doesnt mean you wont enjoy other classic casino games in this site. While 7bit is mainly slots-focused, it still offers a good selection of table games, poker, specialty games, and even bingo.

Bonuses: 3.5/5

You can take advantage of fiat and crypto match deposits alike, but you wont find any sort of no-deposit bonus here. Their 100% crypto match extends to 65 ETH and 100 free spins over your first 3 deposits, and additionally, they offer a fiat match deposit of 100% up to $100.

While were glad 7bit has come around to accept various forms of fiat currencies, we were a bit disappointed to notice their comparably high 40x playthrough requirement for earning back your fiat and crypto matches.

Banking: 4.5/5

In addition to accepting 6 forms of crypto (BTC, Litecoin, ETH, Dogecoin, USDT, and Bitcoin Cash), you have the option to make your deposits with Visa/MasterCard, Maestro, Neosurf, and Skrill/Neteller.

Moreover, they offer low deposit minimums all around - youll only need to deposit $10 or the equivalent of 0.01 ETH to start placing your bets here. Finally, they offer instant crypto withdrawals and 48-72 hour fiat payouts.

Their wide variety of available deposit methods (combined with their low deposit minimums and speedy payout times) encouraged us to give them a 4.5/5 rating.

Customer Support: 4/5

Their customer support was easy to get in touch with. They offer 24/7/365 assistance via live chat, email, and phone. We emailed their team and got a response back in under 24 hours. When we called their phone line, we were able to speak to a real person in just under 20 minutes. No complaints here!

Pros

20+ sports available to bet on

Live dealer baccarat, blackjack, and roulette

Impressive crypto match up to 65 ETH

Accepts 12 forms of crypto

Broad selection of games to enjoy

Cons

No phone support available

Sports odds arent the most competitive

No fiat currencies accepted

Link:

The Best Ethereum Casinos for Real Money Gambling in 2022 - The News Minute

Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC) held its head above the water Monday evening but most major altcoins remained subdued as the global cryptocurrency market cap decreased 1.6% to $1.7 trillion.

What Happened: The apex coin traded 1.4% higher over 24 hours at $36,450.99. Over a seven-day period, it has plunged 13.7%.

Ethereum (CRYPTO: ETH), the second-largest cryptocurrency, traded 2.7% lower over 24 hours at $2,422.50. For the week, it has dropped 24.5%.

Dogecoin (CRYPTO: DOGE) was down 0.8% over 24 hours at $0.14 over 24 hours. Over the last seven days, it has fallen 20.1%.

DOGE-rival Shiba Inu (SHIB) declined 5.5% to $0.00002 over 24 hours. It has lost 27.2% of its value over the week.

The three largest gainers over 24 hours were SAFEMOON (SAFEMOON), Maker (MKR), and Cosmos (ATOM).

SAFEMOON shot up a whopping 210% to $0.0000015, ATOM spiked 4.8% to $1,904.38, and ATOM was up 2.3% at $35.71 in the period.

See Also: How To Buy Bitcoin (BTC)

Why It Matters: On an intraday basis, BTC moved between $33,064.80 and $37,475.91 mark, while ETH touched a low of $2,180 and a high of $2,502.70 in the period.

Cryptocurrency markets remain volatile ahead of the Federal Open Market Committee meeting slated for Jan. 25 and Jan. 26.

The rapidly changing Federal Reserve policy in response to rising inflation has caused extreme fear in both legacy and crypto markets, said Marcus Sotiriou, an analyst at the United Kingdom-based digital asset broker GlobalBlock.

The Joe Biden administration is expected to release its strategy for digital assets going into February with the executive order presented to the president in the coming weeks, according to a prior report.

Meanwhile, political tensions are boiling over in Europe. NATO sent in reinforcements and the United States put its troops on the alert over Russian troop build-up on Ukraines borders, according to a Reuters report. Both Russia and the United States are major Bitcoin mining nations.

A bearish market is leading to a fall in open interest. Bitcoin and Ethereum futures open interest have contracted $6 billion and $3.1 billion respectively since November highs, according to Delphi Digital data.

Futures Open Interest Vs Funding Rate for Bitcoin, Ethereum Courtesy Delphi Digital

As prices soured, traders with highly leveraged long positions have been closed out multiple times over the past few weeks. Funding rates remain neutral, with longs and shorts staying even and traders undecided, the independent cryptocurrency research firm wrote, in an emailed note.

The weekly RSI [Relative Strengh Indicator] currently sits at 37, which is usually considered as indicating the price is oversold. The fact that every bear market bottom for Bitcoin has ranged between 29-35 on the weekly RSI suggests that the risk/reward is advantageous for buying in this area if you believe in the long-term value of this asset class, said GlobalBlocks Sotiriou.

Sven Henrich, a technical analyst and commentator, tweeted Monday that it was time to start nibbling on the apex coin.

Amsterdam-based trader Michal van de Poppe said on Twitter that Bitcoin was ready for a test at $38,000 and possibly $40,700 level.

Read Next: Amid The Crypto Carnage, These 2021 Faves Lost Nearly Half Of Their Values Last Week

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Bitcoin Manages A Greenish Hue As Ethereum, Dogecoin Keep Flashing Bright Red: Is The Crypto Bloodbath Ne - Benzinga

An autonomous bot thats been outperforming the crypto market by using data from weekly surveys of traders shows strong demand for Ethereum and three other altcoins.

The Real Vision Bot was co-developed by quant analyst and hedge fund CEO Mortiz Seibert as a way to obtain signals and gauge trader sentiment from fans of the financial content platform Real Vision.

Real Vision says the bot has had an astonishing record of outperforming the aggregated bucket of top 20 cryptos by more than 20% simply by surveying the preferences of traders.

The latest survey results show that while leading smart contract platform Ethereum (ETH) remains popular with investors at 64% overweight compared to the bot, layer-2 scaling solution Polygon (MATIC) has climbed to the exact same level.

Just a single percentage point behind at 63% is decentralized finance protocol Terra (LUNA) in third place.

Bitcoin (BTC) fills the fourth slot with 62% of respondents voting to overweight their holdings with BTC, despite the rough ride its been on since hitting an all-time high back in November.

Smart contract platform and ETH alternative Solana (SOL) rounds out the top-5 crypto assets at 48%.

Interoperable blockchain ecosystem Cosmos (ATOM) was a hair behind in sixth place, followed by layer-1 smart contract platform Avalanche (AVAX) and the enterprise-grade blockchain platform Fantom (FTM).

Completing the top-10 list are cross-chain interoperability protocol Polkadot (DOT) and decentralized oracle network Chainlink (LINK).

Participants in the Real Vision Bots surveys dont necessarily have to own the crypto in question in order to cast a vote for it. In an interview with Real Vision, the bots co-creator Moritz Seibert describes it as a hive mind that is able to beat other entities in the crypto ecosystem.

This bot is really fascinating because it started as a research project, where we linked it up with a Real Vision Exchange to run paper portfolios based on weekly surveys, where what we wanted to find out is if theres a Real Vision hive mind that can beat the markets and that can also beat the interviewees, the professionals that are interviewed on the Real Vision platform.

And so, as it turns out, there is a hive mind crypto portfolio thats far ahead of the bot run crypto portfolio and the experts and the market.

Featured Image: Shuttersock/vectorpouch/Natalia Siiatovskaia

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As Markets Break Down, Traders Favor Ethereum (ETH), Solana (SOL), and Two More Altcoins, According to Cryp... - The Daily Hodl

Ethereum Classic (ETC) gets a bearish rating from InvestorsObserver Monday. The coin is down 5.01% to $22.91 while the broader crypto market is down 4.18%.

The Sentiment Score provides a quick, short-term look at the cryptos recent performance. This can be useful for both short-term investors looking to ride a rally and longer-term investors trying to buy the dip.

Ethereum Classic price is currently below support. With support set around $23.45 and resistance at $24.99, Ethereum Classic is potentially in volatile territory as selling pushes the crypto's price below recent support.

Ethereum Classic has traded on low volume recently. This means that today's volume is below its average volume over the past seven days.

Due to a lack of data, this crypto may be less suitable for some investors.

Click here to unlock the rest of the report on Ethereum Classic

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Ethereum Classic (ETC) Falls 5.01% Monday: What's Next for This Bearish Rated Crypto? - InvestorsObserver

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GeForce RTX 30 and Radeon RX 6000 average prices fall as Ethereum price weakens and GPU availability improves - Notebookcheck.net

Crypto bros never tire of sharing their utopian visions, but their big brain ideas arent always embraced by the proles.

Vitalik Buterin, the co-founder and inventor of Ethereum, has become the latest victim of this insolence.

The 27-year-old had pitched a bold solution to the gender pay gap: synthetic wombs.

Synthetic wombs would remove the high burden of pregnancy, significantly reducing the inequality, he tweeted on Tuesday.

The proposal gained support from several tech bros but incurred the wrath of feminists.

They argued that biological gestation isnt the main barrier to gender equality. Instead, they pointed to the high costs of childrearing, limited governmental support, and widespread sexism.

Some pointed to the positive aspects of pregnancy or suggested that Buterin was disconnected from reality.

Buterins technoutopian solution emerged in a discussion started by the ultimate tech visionary: the self-described utopian anarchist, Elon Musk.

The Tesla tycoon had been expressing his long-held concerns about population collapse:

We should be much more worried about population collapse If there arent enough people for Earth, then there definitely wont be enough for Mars.

Synthetic wombs would presumably provide Musk with the workers that his Martian colony requires.

Musk and Buterin have several things in common. Both have founded lionized companies, joined the billionaires club, and cultivated the image of brilliant polymaths.

The duo is also capable of laughing at themselves in a weirdly self-aggrandizing sort of way.

Buterin last week asked for the most unhinged criticisms of him on Twitter. After 20 hours, hed received over 2,400 responses.

HT Molly White

Excerpt from:

Ethereum inventor wants to replace pregnant women with synthetic wombs - The Next Web

Ethereum (CRYPTO:ETH)- the world's second-largest cryptocurrency, and the most popular smart contract and decentralized application network -- just changed the way it pays the people who maintain its network, in ways that could make it an even more appealing investment. When the next major evolution in its upgrade roadmap occurs, this change could reduce its supply and increase its value. That might be great news for investors seeking to hedge against inflation.

Since Aug. 5, a portion of the fees paid by users of Ethereum's network, which used to go toward making new coins with which to pay miners, has instead been burnt or destroyed. A total of 177,424 ETH, worth around $672 million at the time of writing, has been taken out of circulation since the upgrade, leaving 117.3 million tokens in circulation according to CoinMarketCap. By taking coins out of circulation, this change could make each existing coin more valuable.

Ethereum is currently produced by miners under a proof-of-work consensus mechanism that consumes a lot of energy, just like Bitcoin (CRYPTO:BTC) production. It has a variable annual inflation rate of around 2.8% at the moment -- but it'll issue fewer new coins when it upgrades its network to a staking-based consensus.

Image source: Getty Images.

Instead of solving tough math problems to keep the network running smoothly -- and getting rewarded for it -- Ethereum holders will be able to do the same things by storing away, or staking, some or all of their tokens. Around 6.2% of the circulating supply, or 7.4 million ETH tokens worth an estimated $28 billion, have already been staked. That staked ETH is currently earning an annual percentage yield of 5.8%, way more than any bank.

Once Ethereum's major upgrade occurs sometime in late 2021 or early 2022, one simulation estimates that the circulating supply of Ethereum could shrink by around 1.4% each year at current rates of fee burning. In theory, that might reduce the value of each token by an equal proportion. This means that the circulating supply of the asset will shrink.

Bitcoin is currently viewed as a store of value, or a safe haven asset to hedge against inflationary fiat currencies. But Ethereum is more of an economy -- a fledgling financial landscape for the internet.

Aside from staking, Ethereum is also the foundation for decentralized finance protocols, many of which are based on Ethereum and its smart contracts. These smart contracts, which run on the blockchain and execute when predetermined conditions are met, are also used to build decentralized applications (dApps).

Investors currently have 7.7 million ETH, or $29 billion, locked up in DeFi protocols for token swapping, yield farming, or liquidity mining. This is where token holders can provide collateral in crypto assets to earn more crypto assets.

Ethereum is also the standard for the majority of nonfungible tokens, or NFTs, which have been booming in sales this year. NFTs are unique tokens on the blockchain that prove ownership; they can represent art, music, gaming items, avatars, and even real estate.

Additionally, Ethereum is the base layer for stablecoins -- digital assets pegged to a fiat currency. Around half of the world's most popular stablecoin, Tether (CRYPTO:USDT), is based on the Ethereum standard, with $34 billion worth residing on the network.

There's just one drawback to Ethereum's current popularity: Rising demand has inflated network fees, with the average transaction now costing $40. The currency's upcoming upgrade includes other improvements designed to lower those fees and speed up transactions, but for now, the higher fees make it harder for people and other apps to actually use Ethereum.

Ethereum's strengths compared to Bitcoin have driven Ethereum prices 400% higher since the beginning of 2021, compared to just 70% for Bitcoin.

Major institutions such as Grayscale have taken notice, and they're loading up on ETH. Institutional funds offer wealthy clients exposure to the asset without requiring them to hold it, and Grayscale currently holds $10 billion worth of ETH in its Ethereum Trust (OTC:ETHE).

Even some of the big Wall Street banks have leaned bullish on Ethereum. In July, analysts at investment bank Goldman Sachs said that Ethereum's real use cases give it the potential to become the dominant digital store of value in the coming years.

The network may also be viewed as a more environmentally friendly investment when it moves away from mining, which looks good to eco-conscious corporations.

Coupled with the prospect of supply deflation, these factors could drive an uptick in demand and prices. That trend might only grow stronger if the COVID-19 pandemic spurs inflation and currency devaluations on a global scale.

Increased regulation in the U.S., such as the controversial crypto tax reporting bill, could stifle innovation and mainstream Ethereum adoption in the short term. There is also the threat of faster rival blockchains such as Cardano or Polkadot becoming the de facto standard for smart contracts, DeFi, and dApps.

These networks have gained traction recently as the crypto ecosystem expands, but Ethereum has already cemented itself as the industry standard, just as IBM did with computing in the early 1980s. With so many platforms already running on Ethereum, and it having the largest support and developer community, it will be no mean feat to knock the network off its perch.

With this in mind, now might not be a bad time to buy and hold Ethereum for at least couple of years.

This article represents the opinion of the writer, who may disagree with the official recommendation position of a Motley Fool premium advisory service. Were motley! Questioning an investing thesis -- even one of our own -- helps us all think critically about investing and make decisions that help us become smarter, happier, and richer.

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How Ethereum's Next Big Upgrade Could Boost Its Value - The Motley Fool

Bitcoin (CRYPTO:BTC) and Ethereum (CRYPTO:ETH) have had a rollercoaster of a year so far. Over the past 12 months, Bitcoin's price has surged by nearly 300%, and Ethereum is up by more than 900% -- and that's despite the massive downturn they've both experienced over the past few weeks.

Now that cryptocurrency prices are falling, it can be a smart opportunity to "buy the dip" and invest in Bitcoin or Ethereum while they're more affordable. But if you have limited funds available to invest, which cryptocurrency will give you more for your money? Here's what you need to know.

Image source: Getty Images.

Bitcoin is one of the original cryptocurrencies, and it has, by far, the most name recognition among the public.

If any cryptocurrency is going to succeed, it's going to need to earn widespread adoption among sellers. Because Bitcoin is the most recognized cryptocurrency, it already has an advantage in that department. More than 15,000 companies worldwide accept Bitcoin as a form of payment, according to Fundera, and the more merchants adopt Bitcoin, the better chance it has at becoming a mainstream form of payment.

In addition, Bitcoin is known as a deflationary currency, meaning it should only increase in value over time. This could give it a leg up over fiat currencies -- such as the U.S. dollar -- that are subject to inflation.

The biggest risk involved in any cryptocurrency is that it's highly speculative at this point. While thousands of businesses do accept Bitcoin, the vast majority of sellers are not on board with cryptocurrency yet. Right now, it's anyone's guess whether Bitcoin will eventually become widely accepted. And if it doesn't become mainstream, it could eventually become worthless.

Another downside to Bitcoin is its energy consumption. The Bitcoin mining process uses an incredible amount of computing power, which is an energy-intensive process. In fact, Bitcoin transactions currently consume more energy than the entire country of Venezuela, according to a study from the University of Cambridge.

That energy usage is already causing concern among regulators and investors, and Tesla recently announced it was suspending Bitcoin as a form of payment because of its energy consumption.

Image source: Getty Images.

Ethereum is a blockchain technology that hosts a native coin called Ether. Ethereum is one of the biggest names in the blockchain space, and there is a wide variety of projects hosted on the Ethereum blockchain.

Decentralized finance, for example, uses the Ethereum blockchain, and so do non-fungible tokens (NFTs). Ethereum is an open-source technology that allows developers from all over the world to create new applications on the blockchain, and if any of those new projects succeed, Ethereum (and Ether) will benefit from it as well.

Developers can also create "smart contracts" on the network, which allow users to perform safe and credible transactions without help from a third party, such as a lawyer. Smart contracts could revolutionize a variety of industries, giving Ethereum an advantage over its competitors.

Finally, developers are working on an update to the Ethereum blockchain to make it far more energy-efficient. The new technology, Ethereum 2.0, will be released later this year and is expected to use 99.95% less energy than the current technology.

Again, cryptocurrencies are highly speculative, so there's no guarantee that Ethereum or Ether will become widely adopted. Ethereum also doesn't have as much name recognition as Bitcoin, so if merchants only accept one form of cryptocurrency, they may be more likely to accept Bitcoin than Ether.

Similarly, there are no promises that blockchain will be as revolutionary as some people may believe. Because Ethereum's biggest advantages lie in its blockchain technology, if blockchain itself doesn't pan out, Ethereum could suffer for it.

Cryptocurrency in general is a high-risk investment, so before you invest at all, make sure you're willing to tolerate the high levels of risk and volatility.

While neither of these cryptocurrencies is necessarily a "safe" investment, Bitcoin may carry less risk than Ethereum because it has a longer track record and greater name recognition. However, Ethereum may have more opportunities for growth over time.

Whichever option you choose, make sure you've done your research and are comfortable with risk. Cryptocurrency isn't right for everyone, but choosing the right investment can help you make the most of your money.

This article represents the opinion of the writer, who may disagree with the official recommendation position of a Motley Fool premium advisory service. Were motley! Questioning an investing thesis -- even one of our own -- helps us all think critically about investing and make decisions that help us become smarter, happier, and richer.

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Bitcoin vs. Ethereum: Which One Is the Right Investment ...

Editorial Note: Forbes Advisor may earn a commission on sales made from partner links on this page, but that doesn't affect our editors' opinions or evaluations.

Ethereum is often referred to as the second most popular cryptocurrency, after Bitcoin. But unlike Bitcoinand most other virtual currenciesEthereum is intended to be much more than simply a medium of exchange or a store of value. Instead, Ethereum calls itself a decentralized computing network built on blockchain technology. Lets unpack what that means.

Like all cryptocurrencies, Ethereum works on the basis of a blockchain network. A blockchain is a decentralized, distributed public ledger where all transactions are verified and recorded.

Its distributed in the sense that everyone participating in the Ethereum network holds an identical copy of this ledger, letting them see all past transactions. Its decentralized in that the network isnt operated or managed by any centralized entityinstead, its managed by all of the distributed ledger holders.

Blockchain transactions use cryptography to keep the network secure and verify transactions. People use computers to mine, or solve complex mathematical equations that confirm each transaction on the network and add new blocks to the blockchain that is at the heart of the system. Participants are rewarded with cryptocurrency tokens. For the Ethereum system, these tokens are called Ether (ETH).

Ether can be used to buy and sell goods and services, like Bitcoin. Its also seen rapid gains in price over recent years, making it a de-facto speculative investment. But whats unique about Ethereum is that users can build applications that run on the blockchain like software runs on a computer. These applications can store and transfer personal data or handle complex financial transactions.

Ethereum is different from Bitcoin in that the network can perform computations as part of the mining process, says Ken Fromm, director of education and development at the Enterprise Ethereum Alliance. This basic computational capability turns a store of value and medium of exchange into a decentralized global computing engine and openly verifiable data store.

You can use Ether as a digital currency in financial transactions, as an investment or as a store of value. Ethereum is the blockchain network on which Ether is held and exchanged. As mentioned above, however, this network offers a variety of other functions outside of ETH.

These can be simple movements of funds, but they may also be complex transactions that do anything from exchanging assets to taking out loans to acquiring a piece of digital art, says Boaz Avital, head of product at Anchorage. The transactions are processed and stored on the Ethereum network.

The Ethereum network can also be used to store data and run decentralized applications. Rather than hosting software on a server owned and operated by Google or Amazon, where the one company controls the data, people can host applications on the Ethereum blockchain. This gives users control over their data and they have open use of the app as theres no central authority managing everything.

Perhaps one of the most intriguing use cases involving Ether and Ethereum are self-executing contracts, or so-called smart contracts. Like any other contract, two parties make an agreement about the delivery of goods or services in the future. Unlike conventional contracts, lawyers arent necessary: The parties code the contract on the Ethereum blockchain, and once the conditions of the contract are met, it self-executes and delivers Ether to the appropriate party.

Bitcoins primary use is as a virtual currency and store of value. Ether also works as a virtual currency and store of value, but the decentralized Ethereum network makes it possible to create and run applications, smart contracts and other transactions on the network. Bitcoin doesnt offer these functions. Its only used as a currency and store of value.

Ethereum also processes transactions more quickly. New blocks are validated on the Bitcoin network once every 10 minutes while new blocks are validated on the Ethereum network once every 12 seconds, says Gary DeWaal, chair of Kattens Financial Markets and Regulation group. And future developments could speed up Ethereum transactions even more, he notes.

Last, there is no limit on the number of potential Ether tokens while Bitcoin will release no more than 21 million coins.

Its a common misconception to people who are new to the Ethereum network. You dont buy Ethereum itselfthats the network. Instead, you buy Ether and then use it on the Ethereum network. Given Ethereums popularity, its very easy to buy Ether:

You might consider investing in the Ethereum network for a few reasons, according to DeWaal. First, it has value and use as a virtual currency; second, the Ethereum blockchain could become more attractive when it migrates to the new protocol; and third as more people utilize Ethereum distributed apps, demand for ETH may increase, he says.

Besides buying Ether directly, you could also try investing in companies that are building applications using the Ethereum network. If youd like help managing your investment, you could also buy into a professional investment fund like the Bitwise Ethereum Fund or Grayscale Ethereum Trust, though these are currently only open to accredited investors.

Before making any significant investment in Ether or other cryptocurrencies, consider speaking with a financial advisor first about the potential risks. Given the high risk and volatility in this market, make sure its money you can afford to lose, even if you believe in Ethereums potential.

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What Is Ethereum And How Does It Work? Forbes Advisor

Ethereum started a steady increase and it cleared $3,400 against the US Dollar. ETH price is showing positive signs and it might accelerate further above $3,500.

Ethereum formed a base above the $3,250 level and started a steady increase. ETH price was able to clear the $3,350 and $3,380 resistance levels.

It even surged above the $3,400 zone and settled well above the 100 hourly simple moving average. A high was formed near $3,477 before there was a downside correction. The price corrected lower below $3,400, but the bulls were active near $3,350.

It formed a low near $3,340 and started a fresh increase. Ether traded above the 50% Fib retracement level of the recent decline from the $3,477 swing high to $3,340 low.

It is now trading above $3,400 and the 100 hourly simple moving average. There is also a key bullish trend line forming with support near $3,425 on the hourly chart of ETH/USD. The pair is attempting a break above the 76.4% Fib retracement level of the recent decline from the $3,477 swing high to $3,340 low.

If the bulls succeed, there could be more gains above the $3,480 resistance. The next main resistance is near the $3,500 level. A clear break above the $3,500 resistance might open the doors for another increase. In the stated case, ether may possibly rise towards the $3,600 level.

If ethereum fails to continue higher above the $3,480 and $3,500 resistance levels, it could start a downside correction. An immediate support on the downside is near the $3,435 level.

The next major support is now forming near the $3,425 zone and the trend line. A downside break below the trend line could spark a sharp decline. In the stated scenario, ether price could revisit the $3,350 support region.

Technical Indicators

Hourly MACD The MACD for ETH/USD is now gaining pace in the bullish zone.

Hourly RSI The RSI for ETH/USD is now above the 50 level.

Major Support Level $3,350

Major Resistance Level $3,500

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TA: Ethereum Bulls Keeps Pushing, Why Rally Isnt Over Yet - NewsBTC