$ETH

**ETH** is the native cryptocurrency of the **Ethereum blockchain**, the world's leading platform for decentralized applications (dApps) and smart contracts. Founded by Vitalik Buterin and others in 2015, Ethereum goes beyond simple payments.

Its core innovation is the **Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM)**, enabling **smart contracts** – self-executing code that powers dApps like DeFi (decentralized finance), NFTs, and DAOs. ETH is used to pay transaction fees ("gas") and for staking to secure the network after its transition to **proof-of-stake (PoS)** via "The Merge" in 2022.

As the fuel for this vast ecosystem, ETH is the second-largest cryptocurrency by market cap, valued for its utility and role in Web3.