- Ethereum is the second most popular and widely recognized cryptocurrency after Bitcoin. Unlike Bitcoin, it is a platform for the development of decentralized applications rather than just being a transactional currency. Ethereum is currently the backbone of the crypto world because hundreds of cryptocurrencies are ERC20 tokens built upon the Ethereum blockchain. Because of this, Ethereum is one of the safest bets in crypto as a vast majority of projects rely on it. Founded by Vitalik Buterin, it has arguably one of the strongest development teams in crypto. Beyond that, it also has widescale adoption that rivals Bitcoin. Anywhere you can purchase bitcoin or find bitcoin and altcoin pairings, it is likely you'll also find ethereum as well. In the next two years Ethereum is planning to implement a couple of upgrades that will allow Ethereum to scale and compete with third generation cryptocurrencies. Raiden is a project that is analogous to Bitcoin's Lightning Network and will aim to provide near instant and low fee transactions on the Ethereum Blockchain. Casper on the other hand will slowly introduce the transition of proof of stake, preparing the network for sustainability.
- At its current state, Ethereum is beginning to face scalability and network congestion issues. Being one of the most widely used blockchain networks, Ethereum has seen its share of drastic transaction time increases, most notably when Cryptokitties first launched. Because of its sheer size and utilization, making any significant changes (such as Casper and proof of stake) can be difficult. And if they do not implement things properly, it could lead to disastrous outcomes.