Cardano, Solana, and Polkadot may just overtake Ethereum, which is plagued by network congestion and high gas fees. According to Cardano founder Charles Hoskinson, there will not be an Ethereum killer as there is room in the ecosystem for all four networks.
Three potential ETH “killers”
Which cryptocurrency has the potential to become the “Ethereum Killer?” This is a question that is becoming increasingly popular among crypto communities. Ethereum’s problems, such as high gas fees and network congestion with limited scalability, are becoming more visible. As a result, potential substitutes have emerged and are competing for a larger share of the DeFi market.
Cardano: faster and cheaper
Cardano, Solana, and Polkadot are among Ethereum’s main competitors.
Cardano is a third-generation blockchain. Through rigorously peer-reviewed upgrades and updates, the network was created to address issues plaguing the blockchain industry. Unlike Ethereum, which uses proof-of-work (PoW), Cardano uses a more environmentally friendly proof-of-stake (PoS) consensus mechanism. Ethereum, on the other hand, is working on a PoS migration with ETH 2.0.
Cardano outperforms Ethereum in terms of transaction speed, with 250 TPS compared to the latter’s 20 TPS.
ETH 2.0 will include a sharding mechanism that will allow for the processing of 100,000 TPS. Meanwhile, Cardano is developing its Layer 2 Hydra, which has the potential to scale to 1 million TPS.
Cardano Smart Contracts
Furthermore, Cardano’s smart contracts will be launched over the weekend, ushering Cardano into the DeFi space. The much-anticipated day will determine whether the network’s well-researched design will work on a large scale.
Given that both Cardano and Ethereum are undergoing significant changes, it is difficult to predict which will come out on top. Cardano may be within striking distance of Ethereum’s market cap, but future events will determine whether it is crowned the Ethereum killer.
Solana on an epic run
Solana is another network that has attracted investors to its native token SOL in the last month. Solana, like Cardano, aims to address Ethereum’s high transaction costs and scaling issues. Solano has gone on an epic run from $39.29 to a high of $216.47 in 30 days. It has cooled off a little since then, but is definitely a force to be reckoned with.
Because the network can currently process 50,000-65,000 TPS, transaction costs are low, averaging $0.00025. Ethereum, on the other hand, has higher transaction fees and is more volatile. According to recent BitInfoCharts, the average transaction fee was $48.17.
Solana is currently unable to overtake Ethereum due to a lack of adoption blocks. However, as Solana releases new NFTs, institutional investors join, and SOL’s value rises, the narrative may shift.
Could Polkadot be the next Ethereum killer?
Polkadot has been mentioned as a potential Ethereum killer, despite garnering fewer headlines than the previous two. The network solves the problem of network congestion by connecting parachains to the central relay chain. Cross-chain communication is also possible with this feature.
Again, Ethereum’s upcoming sharding could accomplish the same thing. Polkadot may also need to compete more aggressively, given that Cardano and Solana both surpassed DOT’s market cap.
Can’t we all just get along?
Notably, the term “Ethereum Killer” isn’t a title that any of these competitors aspire to. Ethereum rules the DeFi world, and its demise would be disastrous for the coins listed above. As a result, rather than coin maximalism, many advocate for a multi-network ecosystem. Cardano founder Charles Hoskinson has even stated that there is room for coexistence.
Jay Speakman is a technology writer based in San Francisco, California. He writes on the topics of blockchain, cryptocurrency, DeFi and other disruptive technologies. Clients include Avalanche, Be[in]Crypto, Trust Machines and several blogs devoted to blockchain gaming. He will not rest until fiat currency is defeated.
