Ethereum Classic (ETC)

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Ethereum Classic (ETC)
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Ethereum Classic (ETC) is an open source blockchain-based platform and cryptocurrency that resulted from a fork on the Ethereum blockchain. It is a project focused on the continuation of the original Ethereum blockchain, which offers tools for developers to create smart contracts and decentralized applications.

For the 30 days before January 8, 2019, Ethereum Classic was the ninth most actively traded cryptocurrency according to CoinMarketCap, a data reporting service. Its price was about $5.08 per ETC.

History

Ethereum Classic was created when the original Ethereum blockchain forked in 2016. The fork happened because of a hacker attack against an organization called the DAO (Decentralized Autonomous Organization), which was based on Ethereum's blockchain. The creators of ETC disagreed with the decision to modify Ethereum's original code as a result of the attack.

In June 2018, Coinbase, one of the largest U.S.-based cryptocurrency exchanges, announced it would be adding Ethereum Classic to its trading platform. This would make ETC the fifth digital asset supported by Coinbase. Ethereum Classic's price increased more than 20 percent as a result of the news.

On August 15, 2018, Coinbase announced via Twitter that their exchange would allow customers to buy and sell ETC for the first time at 5 PM PST the following evening. By the morning of the 16th, the price of ETC had climbed 15 percent on top of its initial gains for the previous day.

On May 5, 2021, ETC hit a record high of $108.32 representing a nearly 130 percent spike, the biggest in its history. While it is not known exactly what caused this, data from Google Trends indicates that internet search interest in the altcoin grew significantly in the first week of May.

Blockchain reorganizations

Attacks

Coinbase suspended on-chain ETC transactions (withdrawals and deposits) after observing a number of chain reorganizations and double-spendings of ETC on January 5, 2019. In its blog post on the issue, Coinbase first reported that approximately 88,500 ETC had been double-spent (based on prices at the time, this amounted to about $460,000). It updated that figure on January 7, stating that 219,500 ETC had been double-spent while it maintained its freeze on on-chain transactions. At the January 8 price of $5.08, the value of the double-spend is about $1.15 million.

In August 2020, the Ethereum Classic protocol experienced three “51 percent” attacks, which are cyber attacks specific to blockchain protocols in which the attackers gain more than 50 percent of the blockchain’s computing power and then alter the blockchain. The first attack occurred on August 1 and initially was termed a "reorganization." It affected 3,693 blocks, according to mining company BitFlyer, which first reported the attack in a Tweet. The second took place on August 6. Binance confirmed that 4,000 blocks on the ETC blockchain had been altered and that it was halting ETC payouts, withdrawals, and deposits. ETC was hacked yet again on August 29, 2020. With alterations to 7,000 blocks, the latest attack was the largest of the August attacks.