Ethereum

Ethereum is a blockchain protocol and cryptoasset that extends the bitcoin model to allow the execution of smart contracts.

NB: following common usage we are using Ethereum for both the protocol itself, its mainnet and its associated token Ether or ETH.

Properties

Ethereum is based on the consensus algorithm known as Proof of Stake (having shifted from Proof of Work in late 2022)

Ethereum is not a currency. Ethereum is a protocol and Ether is a protocol token and not a currency.

Ethereum is deflationary.

Ethereum is a bearer instrument.

Ethereum has no fundamental value.

Ethereum has no use value (like most financial assets).

Ethereum has no income-cashflows.

Ethereum has a present-value of zero.

Ethereum has a market-value derived from a combination of speculation and use for transactions on the network.

Ethereum has a terminal-value of zero.

Ethereum is a non-productive investment.

Ethereum has a negative expected return.

Ethereum is a security.

References

  1. Ante, Lennart. 2020. ‘Smart Contracts on the Blockchain – A Bibliometric Analysis and Review’. SSRN Electronic Journal, no. 10: 1–48. https://doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.3576393.
  2. ———. 2021a. ‘Non-Fungible Token (NFT) Markets on the Ethereum Blockchain: Temporal Development, Cointegration and Interrelations’. SSRN Electronic Journal. https://doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.3904683.
  3. ———. 2021b. ‘Smart Contracts on the Blockchain – A Bibliometric Analysis and Review’. Telematics and Informatics 57: 101519. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tele.2020.101519.
  4. Bartoletti, Massimo, Salvatore Carta, Tiziana Cimoli, and Roberto Saia. 2020. ‘Dissecting Ponzi Schemes on Ethereum: Identification, Analysis, and Impact’. Future Generation Computer Systems 102: 259–77.
  5. Brekke, Clara Jaya. 2019. ‘Disassembling the Trust Machine, Three Cuts on the Political Matter of Blockchain T’. PhD Thesis. http://etheses.dur.ac.uk/13174/http://etheses.dur.ac.uk.
  6. Brody, Ann, and Stéphane Couture. 2021. ‘Ideologies and Imaginaries in Blockchain Communities: The Case of Ethereum’. Canadian Journal of Communication 46 (3). https://doi.org/10.22230/cjc.2021v46n3a3701.
  7. Casale-Brunet, S., P. Ribeca, P. Doyle, and M. Mattavelli. 2021. ‘Networks of Ethereum Non-Fungible Tokens: A Graph-Based Analysis of the ERC-721 Ecosystem’. ArXiv Preprint ArXiv:2110.12545. http://arxiv.org/abs/2110.12545.
  8. Hartel, Pieter, Ivan Homoliak, and Daniël Reijsbergen. 2019. ‘An Empirical Study Into the Success of Listed Smart Contracts in Ethereum’. IEEE Access 7: 177539–55.
  9. Jason Kolber, Adam. 2018. ‘Not-So-Smart Blockchain Contracts and Artificial Responsibility’. Stanford Technology Law Review 21 (2): 198–234. https://law.stanford.edu/publications/not-so-smart-blockchain-contracts-and-artificial-responsibility/.
  10. McDonald, Kyle. 2021. ‘Ethereum Emissions: A Bottom-up Estimate’. http://arxiv.org/abs/2112.01238.
  11. Walch, Angela. 2019. ‘Deconstructing ‘Decentralization’: Exploring the Core Claim of Crypto Systems’. C. Brummer (Ed.), Crypto Assets: Legal and Monetary Perspectives, 1–36. https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=3326244.
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