Ethereum is now the world’s most ECO cryptocurrency, consuming over 99% less energy than Bitcoin

Long awaited for over seven years, the migration of the Ethereum network from proof-of-work to proof-of-stake mechanism occurred on September 15, 2022, putting countless operations based on cryptocurrency generation/mining out of “business” using facilities with dozens and hundreds of electricity-intensive graphical accelerators.

From now on, under the proof-of-stake mechanism, designees can validate transactions on the Ethereum network by backing them with their own ETH assets. In other words, the more Ethereum you own, the more you can earn by taking part in processing and validating transactions for other users. Yes, Ethereum mining hasn’t disappeared altogether, but it has become much less necessary and thus more efficient in terms of overall energy consumption.

According to the co-founder of the crypto project, an entrepreneur named VItalik Buterin, the new way of processing Ethereum transactions reduces the associated energy consumption by up to 99.5%, making the network a credible alternative to traditional banking, at least in terms of transaction speed and efficiency. This should make Ethereum a more attractive asset for institutional investors, in theory. In practice, the long-awaited event has so far had no measurable effect on the price of Ethereum, with the value of the cryptocurrency continuing to oscillate in tandem with the price of Bitcoin, which in turn is strongly correlated with the ups and downs of conventional stock markets.

Ether rose 2.2% after the announcement, trading at $1,620 at last check on Thursday. Bitcoin’s main token rose just 0.3% to $20,170.

In other words, hardly anyone cares about VItalik Buterin’s company’s technological innovation, yet.