Ethereum

Ethereum is a programmable blockchain that runs arbitrary code in a shared execution environment, secured by proof of stake since 2022. Where Bitcoin settles payments, Ethereum settles the outcome of programs — which is why nearly every category of on-chain application was built here first.

Gas prices computation, not bandwidth

Every operation carries a gas cost reflecting the work it imposes on every node. Users pay for computation and storage rather than for transaction size, which is what makes an open execution environment economically viable at all: without metering, a single infinite loop would halt the network.

Issuance is net, not gross

Validators are paid newly issued ETH, while a portion of every transaction fee is destroyed rather than paid to anyone. Net issuance is therefore the difference between the two and can be negative when the network is busy. Unlike Bitcoin there is no fixed cap — supply is governed by a formula whose inputs include how much ETH is staked and how heavily the chain is used.

Staking replaced mining

Security now comes from capital at risk rather than energy expended: validators post ETH as a bond and lose part of it for provable misbehaviour. This cut energy consumption by orders of magnitude and introduced a different concentration risk, since staking through a large provider is far easier than running a validator alone.

The rollup-centric roadmap

Rather than raising its own throughput, Ethereum's stated direction is to serve as a settlement and data-availability layer for rollups that execute transactions elsewhere and post proofs or data back. This is why the base layer stays deliberately conservative while most user activity migrates to Layer 2 — a structural choice that shapes fee dynamics on both layers.

What the base layer is actually for

High-value settlement, contract deployment and the security other chains inherit. Routine activity increasingly does not belong here, and the fee market says so. Understanding Ethereum means understanding that its scarcity is blockspace for finality, not blockspace for everything.