Ethereum is going head-to-head with Bitcoin these days, and if you’re ready to jump on the Ethereum train, you’ll want to first understand the difference between Ethereum and Ethereum Classic.
Investing in cryptocurrencies is all the buzz lately, but now more than ever it’s important to be well-educated before investing. With so many cryptocurrencies and markets, it can be easy to make poor decisions.
Educate yourself before you invest
According to a survey carried out by Gemini, a group of 3,000s Americans polled (that had already invested in cryptocurrencies), 77% said that they feel that they need to learn more.
If you’re crypto-curious about the increasingly popular Ethereum, learning before you invest is a great idea. There are two kinds of Ethereum. Ethereum and Ethereum Classic. One way that you can tell them apart is by their ticker symbol and acronym. Ethereum’s is ETH while Ethereum Classic is ETC.
Let’s get into the major and minor differences between Ethereum and Ethereum Classic, so those that are interested in investing can be sure that they understand the fundamental differences between the two, and make the best possible financial decision with their financial advisor.
What is Ethereum?
The blockchain based software Ethereum, supports the second largest worldwide cryptocurrency market, coming second to only Bitcoin. People can use Ethereum to send or receive currency or value from all over the world, without third-party intervention.
In 2013, developer Vitalik Buerin proposed an idea. His idea was to create an expansion of the technology behind Bitcoin and transform it into something capable of creating more use-cases than transactions. Through Ethereum, Vitalik successfully replaced intermediary third parties with something called smart contracts, which set Ethereum apart from other cryptocurrency software.
According to Investopedia, smart contracts are “a self-executing contract, with the terms of the agreement between buyer and seller being directly written into lines of code. The code and the agreements contained therein exist across a distributed, decentralized blockchain network. The code controls the execution, and transactions are trackable and irreversible.”
The Ethereum blockchain works differently than that of Bitcoin, as it does more than just store the records for its native currency Ether. It also allows developers to design and create games and various apps called “d-apps” or “dapps”, within the blockchain itself.
The advantage of DApps over the current internet applications is that they are often safer, more reliable, and more privacy-friendly.
What is Ethereum Classic?
Ethereum Classic came into being in 2016 when Ethereum split into two different software types, following the devastating DAO attack. Ethereum Classic is an open-sourced and decentralized blockchain platform, just like Ethereum, and it also operates smart contracts.
After the DOA hack, the founders of Ethereum (Buterin and Wood), decided to make a drastic change to the blockchain’s basic functioning protocol. But not everyone was on board. A large portion of Ethereum users wanted to stick with the original. This resulted in the split or “hard fork” mentioned previously.
The older version of Ethereum was renamed “Ethereum Classic” or (ETC), while the newer version kept the original title of ETH.
ETH and ETC compared
The bottom line is, ETH and ETC have the same basic functionalities. They both run on the same open-source code and are both still capable of running decentralized apps, and they can even create ERC-20 tokens for said apps.
The main difference between the two is the fact that BTC is incompatible with ETH blockchain updates. After the hard fork, ETC was cut off from the ETH blockchain and user nodes.
Ethereum classic is thought to be more of an ideological foundation than anything else. It was its user’s way of preserving Ethereum’s original code.
Where to invest in Ethereum
Most people decide to invest with ETH, but many people do opt for ETC. Whichever you choose, it’s important to find a high-quality trading market.
Bitvavo is a great option for those looking to Invest in ETH or ETC or even Bitcoin. It’s quickly becoming the cryptocurrency market of choice for Europe. With transparent and low costs, at Bitvavo you pay a maximum of 0.25% trading fee. The more you trade, the less you pay.
Bravo also offers its users the latest pricing information, so you can make the most informed and well-thought-out decision possible.
Ethereum is on the rise, and it looks like it won’t be going anywhere, anytime soon. But investing in the right way will always be important.
