July 30, 2015 was marked by the launch of the first block of the Ethereum network – the so-called genesis block, which marked the beginning of the functioning of the decentralized platform. At the start, Ethereum used a mining model similar to Bitcoin, where new blocks were created using the computing power of specialized devices.
Network split: 2016 hard fork
In 2016, a serious split occurred in the Ethereum ecosystem, provoked by an attack on The DAO project. As a result of the exploit, the attacker gained access to 3.6 million ETH, which at that time was $53 million – about 5% of the total volume of coins. This incident led to the division of the blockchain into two branches: Ethereum and Ethereum Classic.
ICO era: Ethereum as a crypto fundraising hub
In 2017–2018, Ethereum became the main platform for launching initial coin offerings (ICOs). The introduction of the ERC-20 standard significantly simplified the creation of your own tokens, making it possible to quickly and affordably issue digital assets without the need to develop your own infrastructure.
Boom in NFT and digital collectable assets
The introduction of CryptoKitties in 2017 was the first mass demonstration of the capabilities of non-fungible tokens (NFTs) on Ethereum, kickstarting a new direction in the blockchain industry — from gaming to digital art and unique object identification.
Stablecoins and DeFi leadership
Ethereum has become the backbone of the decentralized finance (DeFi) ecosystem, launching the first decentralized stablecoin. Since the early 2020s, the network has held a leading position in the DeFi space, providing infrastructure for lending, asset exchange, and other financial solutions.
Switch to Proof-of-Stake: The Merge updаte
September 2022 was a turning point in the development of Ethereum – a large-scale updаte of The Merge took place, in which the network abandoned the energy-intensive Proof-of-Work and switched to the Proof-of-Stake model. Now the confirmation of transactions takes place through staking – blocking ETH in special smart contracts.
Emergence of spot Ethereum-ETFs
In the spring of 2024, the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) approved the launch of the first spot exchange-traded funds (ETFs) based on Ethereum. ETH became the second digital asset after Bitcoin to receive official access to US stock markets in this format.
Corporate Investments in ETH
In 2025, institutional investors began actively including Ethereum in their balance sheets. Large companies began to acquire ETH as a strategic reserve, following the example of MicroStrategy’s Bitcoin strategy.
The historic price of Ethereum
Ethereum’s highest rate was recorded in November 2021 and amounted to about $4,900. This growth was due to expectations of the transition to Proof-of-Stake, as well as increased activity in the DeFi and NFT spheres. Before that, the maximum in the region of $1,400 was held since the beginning of 2018 – the heyday of the ICO market.