What it is
Ethereum is an open public blockchain, launched in Jul 2015. It is a place to run programs, called smart contracts. The coin is ether (ETH). A transaction fee is paid in ether. In 2022 it moved to proof of stake.
Who can change the rules was not read again. The staking deposit contract is one contract, not the rules of the whole network. It is on Protocols.
- Source: What is Ethereum?, ethereum.org (page updated 31 Mar 2025) · read 21 Oct 2026
- Source: Proof-of-stake (PoS), ethereum.org (page updated 7 Oct 2026) · read 21 Oct 2026
Technical detail
This account is the one on the public networks page, from ethereum.org read on 21 Oct 2026. It was not opened again on 26 Oct.