Ethereum was launched in 2015, building on the foundations of Bitcoin

• 2009: Introduction Bitcoin
• 2012: Vitalik Buterin launches idea for Ethereum
• 2013: Ethereum whitepaper published
• 2014: Ethereum project announced
• 2015: Ethereum project launched
• 2016: Ethereum splits into Ethereum and Ethereum Classic

Source: VanEck.

What is Ethereum?

Ethereum is a blockchain-based open source platform. It enables anybody to build and deploy Decentralized Applications (DApps).

• Blockchain: A distributed database which maintains a continuously expanding list of records, called “blocks”. Online, decentralized, not controlled by a single entity
• DAPPs: Applications running on a peer-to-peer network of computers

Source: VanEck.

Ethereum allows smart contracts to run on the blockchain

• Smart contracts: Contracts which self-execute when a number of preset conditions are met
• They enable automatic transactions, without possibility of
  • Down time
  • Censorship
  • Fraud
  • Third-party interference

Source: VanEck.

How does Ethereum work?

• A developer creates a ‘decentralized application’ and publishes it on the blockchain
• A client uses the application. In order to have transactions processed on the blockchain, the user pays with Ethereum
• Miners verify the transactions and group them to form a block
• Miners are in mutual competition for adding the block to the blockchain
• For each successfully mined block, the miner is rewarded with Ethereum

Source: VanEck.

Note: For simplicity reasons, we refer both to the blockchain and the digital currency as Ethereum on this website. Officially, the currency is named Ether.