$ETH Ethereum, often referred to by its cryptocurrency abbreviation $ETH , is a decentralized platform that enables the creation and deployment of smart contracts and decentralized applications (DApps). It was introduced by Vitalik Buterin in late 2013, and its mainnet launched in 2015. Unlike Bitcoin, which primarily functions as a digital currency, Ethereum serves as a programmable blockchain, allowing developers to build and operate complex applications without any downtime, fraud, control, or interference from third parties. As the native currency of the Ethereum blockchain, Ether ($ETH) is used to pay for transaction fees and computational services on the network. Ethereum has gained significant traction for its versatility and has become a foundational technology in the blockchain and cryptocurrency space, leading to innovations such as decentralized finance (DeFi) and non-fungible tokens (NFTs).