Will Ethereum surpass Bitcoin? Bitcoin's moat does not lie in its ecosystem, while Ethereum's moat does not lie in its technology. The following image will help you see the reality.
Bitcoin is compared to gold, while Ethereum is compared to tech companies. The world's largest asset, gold, and the world's largest market capitalization company, Nvidia, differ by about 5 times. The market capitalization gap between Bitcoin and Ethereum is 4.6 times. This already says a lot; I have never heard anyone promote Nvidia's market value to exceed that of gold, but in the cryptocurrency circle, you can hear that Ethereum is going to surpass Bitcoin.
Gold: Market capitalization is approximately $23.222 trillion.
Nvidia: Market capitalization is approximately $4.455 trillion.
Bitcoin: Market capitalization is approximately $2.35 trillion.
Ethereum: Market capitalization is approximately $508.6 billion.
Gold / Nvidia ≈ 5.21 times ($23.222 / $4.455)
Bitcoin / Ethereum ≈ 4.62 times ($2.35 / $0.5086)
Bitcoin's value comes from 'what it is'—a decentralized 'digital gold'. Its moat is built on a strong social consensus based on hard rules such as a total supply of 21 million coins and predictable issuance (halving every four years). This design makes it a unique anti-inflation and asset hedging tool, and its core economic model is irreplaceable; Ethereum's economic model does not have this characteristic and ultimately cannot replace it.
Ethereum's value lies in 'what it has on it'. Its value is derived from its vast and deeply rooted network effects. It has become the de facto settlement layer and standard for 'smart contracts and decentralized applications'. It is not the fastest chain, but it is the busiest, wealthiest, and has the most developers, making it a 'digital metropolis'. This strong economic gravity makes it difficult to surpass, but not impossible to overcome.
