Many cryptocurrency traders and investors were drawn to Ethereum and Ethereum Classic in May 2021. The two closely related cryptocurrencies recorded new highs on May 6th. While the original Ether reached $3,500 per coin, Ethereum Classic reached $176.
For Ethereum Classic, it was an unprecedented leap – the coin moved from $70 on May 5th to $176 on May 6th. That's a bullish 151.4% increase in value. Though the coin started losing value quickly and has not reached that mark again, most investors still have good feelings for it.
Are you thinking of investing in Ethereum Classic? Do you want to know whether it is a good investment? Are you considering making a long-term investment in the coin? It is important that you understand the coin better before making your final decision.
We all know that cryptocurrencies have made several people rich, especially those who are patient enough to hold on to their investment till the coin value appreciates significantly. But is Ethereum Classic ideal for such long-term investment? That is the question we will try to answer in this post.
Regardless of your experience level in cryptocurrency and online trading, there are many important things you need to know before making a long-term investment in any digital coin. Here, we will discuss these critical points as they relate to Ethereum Classic.
What Is Ethereum Classic?
Ethereum Classic is a cryptocurrency that runs on blockchain technology. It is a smart contract digital currency and a hard fork of the original Ethereum blockchain that is making waves in the cryptocurrency universe. Though it is not anywhere near the original Ethereum in terms of price and market capitalization, the technology was created as an improvement on the original network.
When Ethereum Classic was forked from the original network, the two chains were similar in many ways. Five years down the line, the two are different in many respects. While the primary goal of the hard fork was to preserve the original Ethereum chain and improve it in some ways, the original network has seen major upgrades over the years.
Like most cryptocurrencies, Ethereum Classic is an open-source platform for public use. Smart contract is the primary way the coin works. It supports peer-to-peer transactions, working through predetermined terms and conditions that are automatically observed when participants transact on the ecosystem. It also provides a Turing-complete virtual machine called "Ethereum Virtual Machine, which executes scripts on instruction sets.
The Ethereum Classic software monitors every stage of transactions on the network. Smart contract eliminates human error and significantly minimizes the chances of third-party intervention and fraud. This is basically why the network is seen as a reliable agreement platform for parties in almost every part of the world.
As a decentralized network, the Ethereum Classic ecosystem doesn’t require permission for participation. Anyone can participate, and government restrictions are minimal.
Origin And History Of Ethereum Classic
Ethereum Classic was created in 2016 after a major hack on the original project. A dedicated team simply picked up this original network, made a few changes, and renamed it Ethereum Classic. The DAO (Decentralized Autonomous Organization) hack resulted in 3.6 million ETH theft.
Until the ETC team decided to fork, the network was in limbo about how to return investors' funds and bring back trust to the network. After the split, adherents of Ethereum Classic continued to mine on the old blockchain while many migrated to the new network that resulted from the hard fork. It is important to note at this point that the investor's capital doubled during the fork. The ETC Dev. team works on the main client of the Classic Geth system.
While the Ethereum (ETH) network has grown so big and gained so much in value, Ethereum Classic is still developed by a small group of open-source investors who believe that "code is law" and any alteration of the history breaks the law. Ethereum (ETH) has gone ahead to become the biggest and most actively developed project in blockchain technology. Ethereum Classic (ETC), though a relatively smaller project, is still waxing strong.
How Is Ethereum Classic Different From Ethereum?
If you are going to trust Ethereum Classic by investing in it, you need to know exactly how it differs from the popular ETH. The first thing to note is that the two networks are similar in many ways. They work on smart contracts, and users can create DApps and tokens for their businesses and projects.
The primary difference between the two is that Ethereum Classic is not compatible with the new updates on the Ethereum Network. The biggest of these upgrades is probably the transition to proof of stake, which is great. Unfortunately, ETC doesn't support that.
Another major difference between the two coins is that Ethereum Classic is still mined while Ethereum 2.0 will not be mined. The implication is that ETC’s monetary policy will still depend on being capped and algorithm. Though Ethereum is way more popular, conservative cryptocurrency enthusiasts find Ethereum Classic more appealing.
Check Out: Ethereum Vs Ethereum Classic
Standout Features Of Ethereum Classic
While Ethereum Classic is not as popular as Ethereum, it still has attractive standout features. Smart contract is one of the most beneficial of these features.
The fact that Ethereum Classic has a limit of 210 million tokens is another standout feature. It is part of a monetary policy that makes it similar to Bitcoin, the first and biggest cryptocurrency in the world. Again, it will take a long while for ETC to run into a supply squeeze like what obtains with BTC now.
Two years ago, 2020, the Ethereum Classic Labs made a big move by enabling participants to gain access to the fast-growing DeFi (Decentralized Finance) market. The introduction of “Wrapped ETC” was a big move as it allows ETC owners to “stake” their tokens and enjoy the benefits.
Staking means that ETC owners agree not to trade their tokens for a specified period. In exchange for that, they'll get interest payment in "Wrapped ETC." It works in a similar fashion as a certificate of deposit at a bank.
Read Also: Should I Invest In Ethereum Classic? Is It A Good Investment?
Why Did Ethereum Classic Rise In 2021?
Ethereum Classic saw a surge in popularity. This is primarily due to the rise in the price of the token this past year, 2021. It looks as if the coin just popped out of nowhere to compete with some of the top crypto coins on the market. Just like Ethereum and Dogecoin, it reached a new all-time high in May 2021. Why the sudden rise.
It is hard to authoritatively point at a single factor that is driving up the value of Ethereum Classic. However, many experts believe that the coin is simply catching up to the markets. There seems to be a consensus that the recent rise is merely a natural “correction” of the value and price of the coin. After all, Bitcoin, Ethereum, and several other coins have been seeing rapid growth over the years while BTC rose only gradually, with notable setbacks.
Will ETC Continue To Rise?
If you are planning to invest in Ethereum Classic, one of the things you will be most concerned about is whether the coin will continue to rise going forward.
While we can’t authoritatively state how the market will work in the future, we believe Ethereum Classic will see better days. Earlier in the year, the coin found resistance around the $40 mark and has been trading above that for a while. There is clearly a bullish sentiment in the market, and that is unlikely to fade anytime soon.
Judging by expert opinions that the sudden rise is a natural "correction," it is unlikely to have any negative effect on the coin. Considering ETC performances in the past, the coin is unlikely to fall back below its resistance price point once it breaks it. Even if a correction is to occur, it will provide a level of support for the coin's value.
While there is no guarantee that the price will continue to rise, we believe it is unlikely to fall anytime soon.
Price History Of Ethereum Classic
One of the best ways to understand the value of a coin and how it can perform in the near future is to look at its price history. We’ll do that as briefly as possible here.
Ethereum Classic debuted on exchanges on July 24th, 2016, and was sold for $0.9288. The next day, the price dropped to a historic low of $0.6024. In early August, the coin bounced back and climbed to about $2.76 – that was the high point of the year. In fact, demand for the coin later became too low that it sold for $0.75 in December that year.
2017 was a relatively good year for ETC. It opened the year at $1.45 and performed wonderfully throughout the year. By early September, it has reached a new high of $22. There was a noticeable setback that month, and the coin traded for $9.60 towards month-end. That setback proved to be a minor distraction as the coin picked up again and reached a new all-time high of $47.77 in late December.
Just like other cryptocurrencies, Ethereum Classic had a disappointing 2018. By February, the coin price had dropped from around $40 to an abysmal $16.50. There was a temporary bounce-back that saw the coin trade for $40 again, but that was followed by another serious setback. By early December 2018, ETC was languishing at $3.30 per coin. It managed to close the year at a disappointing $5.50.
2019 was not so good for Ethereum Classic, either. By February, it sold for $3.70. By April, it improved to $8, moving further to $9.7 by early June. It plunged again, eventually closing the year at $4.80.
By February 2020, Ethereum had climbed to $12.34, its highest price since 2018. The price dropped to $4.51 in March. The coin traded between $4 and $6 for the rest of the year, which is not spectacular in any way.
Current Performance Of Ethereum Classic
At the time of writing this piece, ETC was trading at $24.66 per token, with a 24hour low and high of $23.44 and $24.77, respectively. The Market capitalization is $3.26 billion, making it the #38 ranked cryptocurrency.
Obviously, the coin has had a spectacular year. It was trading at $16.90 in February 2021 but dropped a little and traded for between $9.94 and $14 throughout March. By April 17th, ETC had spiked to $46.68. It came down to $29.73 by April 25th but spiked to $71.93 on May 4th. In 24 hours, ETC hit a new all-time high of $176 on May 6th.
It is only natural that ETC price dropped after such an unprecedented growth last month. It is still doing well at over $20, and we are waiting for the next monumental growth.
Ethereum Classic Price Predictions
From all indications, Ethereum Classic is likely to perform even better in the future. CoinCodex’s short-term technical analysis indicates that the coin will be more bullish in the near future. They predict that the coin will have a support level of $67.38 and a resistance of $72.42. The coin can even climb to as much as $77.47 real soon, according to their prediction.
Many other websites have positive outlooks for ETC. Wallet Investors, the respected algorithm-based forecasting site, believes that ETC will continue to rise. It predicts that it will trade for $72.10 by December and as much as $207.81 by December 2025.
Digitalcoinprice, another respectable platform, is a lot more positive for Ethereum Classic. According to its prediction, ETC will reach $35.09 again this year, 2022. It believes that the coin will average $60.09 in 2025. It is also predicting that the coin will be worth as much as $100.83 in the next seven years (2029).
Long Forecast is another website to consider seriously when it comes to predicting coin price, but its Ethereum Classic prediction is not so positive. It predicts that Ethereum Classic will end 2022 at $17.30 but will rise to $18.37 by December 2023 It also predicts that ETC will close 2024 at $18.70 and decline to an abysmal $9.20 by 2025.
Where Will Ethereum Classic Be In The Next Ten Years?
If you are hoping that Ethereum will make you rich in ten years, then you have to start thinking of where the coin will be in the next ten years. The best way to arrive at a reasonable conclusion is to consider the price history of the coin, its current performance, and predictions.
From what we have covered so far, it is very likely that Ethereum Classic will reach new heights by 2031. The network is a decent one, and the coin has finally picked up after five years of the Ethereum hard fork. It has had its share of setbacks, but it is finally picking up, and there is a good chance that the upward trend will continue.
Judging from the fact that Ethereum Classic has risen from its debut price of $0.9288 to about $55 in just five years, there is a good chance that it will rise further in the next ten years.
The predictions of experts should also give you an idea of what the market feels about ETC. There are more positive predictions than negative ones, so we can believe that the coin will be backed by more traders and investors in the future. It can rise further and make investors rich in ten years.
Should You Play The Long-Term Game With Ethereum Classic?
Are you hoping to invest in Ethereum Classic and leave it for ten years? You need to consider everything we have discussed here to make an informed decision.
Let’s help you with a few key facts:
- Ethereum Classic has grown from $0.9288 to more than $50 in just five years. (That’s an incredible 5,283.29% rise in half a decade).
- Ethereum Classic has had several setbacks in terms of price and value, but it has always bounced back to set new highs, even though it takes years in some instances.
- Many expert predictions are positive about Ethereum Classic.
- Ethereum Classic's price history shows it can be a long-term investment. Price rise and falls, but it is always improving over time.
- Ethereum Classic is an affordable investment when compared to Ethereum and Bitcoin.
- Ethereum Classic has a loyal and dedicated community that didn’t abandon it even after the DAO hack.
- Ethereum Classic was very volatile in the past but seems to be less volatile at the moment.
- There are about 120 million ETC tokens in circulation, meaning about 90 million are yet to be mined. (This will have a positive supply/availability effect on its price and value going forward).
Don't Miss: Pros And Cons Of Investing In Ethereum Classic