When you think of blockchain and cryptocurrency, the foremost thing which comes to your mind is indeed BITCOIN! With its value seeing an all-time high at over $18,000, the increasing interest of people in it seems to be justified making it the star of the cryptocurrency market.
Following the popularity of Bitcoin, another cryptocurrency which is showing a lot of heat in the market is Ethereum. Currently standing at approximately $800, it holds a 70 percent market cap of the cryptocurrency market together with Bitcoin. It is not just a digital currency but a blockchain-based platform that comes with Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM), smart contacts, and a very own currency called Ether which is used for peer-to-peer transactions.
The sole purpose of Bitcoin is to serve as a currency for the internet whereas Ethereum is here to deal with the bigger issues. Showing the highest increase in value on ICO Examiner, it was first developed by Vitalik Buterin. He had a vision of not only providing a currency but also creating smart contacts and apps through it that will allow the end users to benefit.
Secured and Faster Transactions
If we look at the figures from July 2022 to December 2022, we will see that the number of unique transactions per day is highest for Ethereum and are about 900k. On the other hand, Bitcoin has supported 300k to 400k unique transactions in a day during the same period of time.
Moreover, the average block time for Bitcoin is 10 minutes whereas that of Ethereum is 12 seconds. This means that the confirmations are quicker in Ethereum which makes it the first priority of people when it comes to transactions.
Smart Contacts
By just copying the code from the Ethereum’s website, you can use it as a standard API coin and it can serve a number of purposes including representation of shares and fundraising. It has a lot more to offer to the users than just its currency Ether.
Mining of the Cryptocurrency
A key difference between the two is the monetary supply as more than two-thirds of the Bitcoin available have already been mined. The launch of Ethereum was through a pre-sale and only half of the coins will be mined in its fifth year of existence. Although Bitcoin is more spread out across different wallets and exchanges, Ethereum has a higher supply in the market.
The Bottom Line
The lower fees, short transaction time, and increased utility attached to Ethereum has caused more people to come towards it. This has also made this cryptocurrency extremely volatile with its value seeing a more drastic increase as compared to Bitcoin.
With both the cryptocurrencies designed with entirely different aims, the comparison is more like between that of oranges and apples. However, Ethereum aims to encompass a lot more than just being a cryptocurrency which is a sign of its promising future in the market.
Written by SF