While bitcoin is the foundation of blockchain technology, Ethereum has given it an entirely new recognition. It has been more than 4 years since the ethereum platform for ‘blockchain applications’, went live. The cryptocurrency has managed to gain remarkable popularity for showing the door to decentralized applications and blockchain solutions.
The Ethereum digital currency was developed on July 30, 2015, a date that will forever be marked in history, by a cryptocurrency programmer Vitalik Buterin. The native cryptocurrency, ether, has the second-largest market capitalization among cryptocurrencies, following bitcoin.
Before we dig deep into how many ethereum are there in circulation today, let’s understand the main purpose of ethereum cryptocurrency and its significance.
Dapps, Smart Contracts, & More!
Ethereum is a platform that enables developers to build decentralized applications on top of it. It aims to decentralize the existing cloud-based client-server model through the power of blockchain technology. Moreover, it aspires to give control back into the hands of people from the current system of centralized servers and organizations controlling much of our private data.
Ethereum gave a new life to blockchain technology. The platform enabled the power to optimize blockchain technology to its maximum capacity. It gave the tool to build decentralized blockchain solutions in an extremely simple way using its own coding language Solidity.
Furthermore, ethereum empowered blockchain technology by providing the means to code and write smart contracts thereby widening the purpose of its program. Blockchain applications in varying domains can be designed by writing smart contracts on the ethereum platform.
Now, that you understand the importance and the value of this cryptocurrency, let’s come down to the subject of the matter: how many ethereum are there?
Ethereum Total Supply
One of the key features of bitcoin is that the supply of the cryptocurrency is limited. The total supply of bitcoin is capped at 21 million, after which no new bitcoins can be created. However, ethereum works on a different model than bitcoin.
The ethereum total supply is unlimited. The founder opted out of setting a limit on the cap of ethereum. However, the founder, Vitalik Buterin did project that the supply of ether would be around 100 million by 2025. But, something went wrong with his projections.
In 2015, the cryptocurrency was launched with 72 million ether generated. In the next 3 years, the crypto has added more than 35 million ether bringing the etherum total supply to more than 107 million. So, how many ethereum coins are there in circulation now?
How Many Ethereum Coins Are There in Circulation?
To be precise, 108,748,476.66 ether coins have been generated until the time of writing this article. However, ethereum, like bitcoin, has been subjected to frauds and hacks due to which a number of ethereum coins are lost.
Let’s look at some major hacks, scandals, and mistakes that have taken place over time leading to losing ether worth millions of dollars today.
Ethereum Address Mistakes
The cryptocurrency ether is basically a string of letters and numbers. If you want to send ether from one account to another, you basically type in the public address of the person you want to send your ether to. But, what happens when you type in the wrong address?
Whenever someone types out a wrong address and sends ether, the coins are gone. In other words, writing “3h”, instead of “h3” and that number of ether is gone forever.
It is estimated that more than 12000 ethereum coins are lost due to typo mistakes. For example- this user lost 2400 ether trying to payout from an exchange.
The cost of misspelling and typing the wrong address of a cryptocurrency worth hundreds of dollars is way too high. Millions of dollars worth of ether are already lost with no means to recover the coins.
Note- Always copy and paste the address, rather than manually typing it. Before sending ethereum, check the identicon of the target address.
Ethereum Hacks
A few years back, an Ethereum project by the name of Decentralized Autonomous Organization (DAO) became the talk of the crypto town. The project was successfully able to raise more than 100 million dollars, the largest crowdfunding experienced for a crypto project ever.
However, success was short-lived. Just months later, a series of vulnerabilities allowed hackers to steal over 50 million dollars in ether. The impact was so strong that it resulted in a hard fork causing the ethereum blockchain to split in half.
Unfortunately, the tales on such hacks on the ethereum blockchain doesn’t end here. Parity is a client built on top of the ethereum platform that uses its own codebase. But, the code had a major flaw resulting in the freezing of millions worth of ether.
In 2017, the bug flaw led to losing approximately $30 million dollars in ether. The digital wallet service accidentally led a developer to take control and freeze the wallets containing ether.
Just recently, Upbit, a prominent South Korean exchange was attacked with the exchange losing nearly $50 million dollars worth of ether.
Note- With the crypto industry still being at a relatively nascent stage, it is necessary that you store your cryptocurrency funds in a safe and secure manner. Hardware wallets are probably one of the best options available in the market for you to store your ether coins. You can also refer to this guide on Monfex, detailing on the wallet options available.
Whale Investors
Whale investors are referred to those who hold huge crypto funds into their wallets. According to this report, about 33% of ethereum is held by 376 whales. While the ether currency is neither stolen nor lost, it also does not get moved very often.
Hence, the investors largely hold the crypto in their wallet and those ethereum coins are not in circulation.
Investing in Ethereum Cryptocurrency
Now that we have established how many ethereum coins are there in circulation, let’s explore the methods for acquiring the cryptocurrency.
The growing prominence of cryptocurrencies has attracted the attention of investors. They are looking for new ways to invest and possess cryptocurrencies.
Mining Ether
Mining cryptocurrencies is a way of generating new coins and simultaneously verifying transactions in the network. Over the years, mining ether has turned into a full-fledged business with a number of options available.
You can choose to invest in mining ether cryptocurrency with pool mining or cloud mining. It is a safe way to earn cryptocurrency through passive investment. Further, you can refer to this guide on Monfex, to understand the hardware and software requirements of mining ether.
Buying Ether
Ether cryptocurrency can also be bought from any popular exchange through credit card or debit card. You can either choose to hold it for a longer time waiting for the price to escalate. Alternatively, you can also sell ether in exchange for other tokens on an exchange platform.
However, you should never store your coins on an exchange wallet. You risk losing your coins in case the exchange is compromised.
Trading Ether
Sophisticated methods of investing in ether have also evolved in the market. Tools of leveraged trading have also found their place in cryptocurrency investments. Monfex, a firm based in UK, provides you with trading instruments for ethereum. You can leverage trades of 20 to 50 times the amount you have put in on this trading platform.
You can refer to this guide on Monfex to learn about leveraged trading for ethereum.
Conclusion
We have given you a brief on hoe many ethereum are there in circulation and the various incidents on the coins throughout the years.
One of the most successful startups in the blockchain crypto-sphere has been ethereum. The future is going to be run by dapps based on the ethereum blockchain. Whether it is sending money back to your native country or buying tickets for music concerts online, the dapps built on ethereum will serve all the major leading industries.
The price of ether will also invariably rise along with its success. For now, the future looks extremely bright for this cryptocurrency.
