$BTC Ethereum (ETH) is the native cryptocurrency of the Ethereum blockchain, a decentralized, open-source platform that launched in 2015. Beyond being a digital currency, Ethereum is designed as a world computer that can execute smart contracts – self-executing agreements with the terms of the agreement directly written into code. This capability has enabled the development of a vast ecosystem of decentralized applications (dApps), including DeFi protocols, NFTs, and DAOs.

ETH is used to pay for transaction fees, known as "gas," on the Ethereum network. It also serves as the base asset for many applications built on the platform and is used for staking to secure the network under its Proof-of-Stake consensus mechanism. Ethereum is the second-largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization and continues to be a foundational technology for the Web3 space.