Ethereum Killer on the Rise? Weiss Ratings Dismisses: Want to Succeed, Be Ethereum's Sidechain
Due to the skyrocketing Ethereum transaction fees this year, the topic of "Ethereum killers" has resurfaced. Supported by exchanges, Solana and Binance Smart Chain (BSC) are on the rise, while the development of Polkadot, Cardano, and Cosmos is gradually taking shape. Will the Ethereum killers be successful this year? Weiss Crypto Ratings expressed doubts about this.
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Weiss Ratings is Skeptical of Ethereum Killers
Cryptocurrency research firm Weiss Ratings recently expressed their views on "Ethereum killers" in a tweet posted yesterday. The analysts at the rating agency stated that regardless of the prospects of other blockchains, Ethereum killers are unlikely to emerge:
"Some say other L1 (layer 1) blockchains are catching up to Ethereum, but we're highly skeptical. It's similar to 2017 when those trying to be Ethereum killers sacrificed all decentralization to make it cheaper and faster."
Some say that other L1s are "catching up to #ETH", but we're highly skeptical. It's the same story from 2017 where wannabe $ETH killers sacrificed all semblance of decentralization to be cheaper and faster.
— Weiss Crypto (@WeissCrypto) April 21, 2021
Furthermore, the analyst also mentioned that many believe these competitors can compete with Ethereum, but that's not the case. Some of these layer 1 blockchains' only hope for successful development is to rely on Ethereum and become its sidechains.
While Weiss Ratings does not hold high expectations for Ethereum killers, the rating agency has still evaluated and ranked Ethereum's competitors. The closest competitor to Ethereum is Cardano, rated as B, followed closely by Tezos and Polkadot. In terms of technology ratings, Ethereum is rated as "Good," while competitors like Cardano, Polkadot, Cosmos, Tezos, Fantom, and others have received an "Excellent" rating.
Key Factors for Success of Non-Ethereum Public Blockchains
According to previous reports, The Block's Research Director Larry Cermak has also outlined several key factors he believes are necessary for the success of "non-Ethereum public blockchains":
Some of you asked how I evaluate non-ETH chains.
1. Great browser wallet
2. Top notch block explorer
3. Native stablecoins
4. Robust infrastructure provider and API
5. Strong developers and incentives
6. Data analytics suite
7. User funnel and cheap onboarding— Larry Cermak 🫡 (@lawmaster) April 4, 2021
However, Larry believes that based on the above criteria, there are currently no public blockchains in the market that have surpassed Ethereum, and it may not happen in the long term.
The Killer of Ethereum Killers
Nevertheless, Ethereum's high transaction fees have indeed provided space for the development of other blockchains, with BSC benefiting the most. This blockchain, promoted by Binance, has attracted a significant amount of funds from Ethereum, and the largest decentralized exchange on the BSC chain, Pancakeswap, has matched Uniswap's trading volume and total locked assets value on the Ethereum chain. However, with the release of Ethereum 2.0 and the development of Layer 2 solutions, everything could change. Perhaps in the end, Ethereum 2.0 will become the "killer of Ethereum killers."