Ethereum
Programmable settlement
History, architecture and utility
Ethereum launched in 2015 and moved from proof of work to proof of stake in 2022 through the Merge. ETH pays network execution fees and supports staking. Issuance and fee burning both affect supply; there is no Bitcoin-style fixed cap. Rollups form a major part of its scaling architecture.
Follow the chapters below to examine the mechanisms, supply, upgrades, ecosystem and risks. The asset’s usefulness does not guarantee a market price or an investment return.
Inside the system
Ethereum accounts and transactions
Ethereum maintains shared state including balances, contract code and storage.
EVM and smart contract composability
The Ethereum Virtual Machine executes instructions deterministically.
Ethereum gas and EIP-1559
Gas measures computational resources; the effective gas price determines their cost.
Ethereum proof of stake and slashing
Validators commit ETH and participate in proposing blocks and attesting to the chain.
Layer 2 rollups explained
A rollup executes activity outside the base layer and publishes information connecting its state to Ethereum.
Token approvals and wallet security
An ERC-20 approval lets a designated spender address transfer tokens up to a specified allowance on your behalf.
Inside a Layer 2 rollup
Transaction
The user signs on the selected Layer 2, which has its own chain identifier.
Sources and references
References for the mechanisms described. Numerical examples are hypothetical unless stated otherwise. Check the applicable version, network and jurisdiction.
References reviewed on 21 September 2026. All sources →