Ethereum reaches Bitcoin in the value transfer metric

A tweet on Wednesday April 15 by Ryan Watkins, a research analyst at Messari, revealed data showing that the total value transferred to the Ethereum network, including ether (ETH) and stablecoin ERC-20, now corresponds to that of the Bitcoin network.

The numbers show that "Ethereum is becoming the dominant value transfer network in the crypto sector," he said. When we talk about transfer of value we mean the value in US dollars of the total units that are transferred on a given day on a blockchain.

In the case of Bitcoin, the metric refers to the value of the USD quotation of all bitcoin (BTC) sent on a given day. The transfer of value to Ethereum differs slightly. In addition to its ether cryptocurrency (ETH), Ethereum supports third-party assets that can be sent and received through its network. The transfer of value to Ethereum refers to the USD value of ETH and Ethereum-based stablecoins which are transferred on a specific day.

Disputes over data

Citing concerns about the validity of Watkins' findings, independent developer Udi Wertheimer expressed his views on the exclusion of Omni data, a software layer on the Bitcoin network that includes the issuance of the world's most used stablecoin, tether (USDT).

The Ethereum chart had, however, included data for USDT issued as an ERC-20 token. "USDT on Omni is more voluminous than all non-USDT Ethereum-based stablecoins. If you include the USDC and the other smaller ones, you should also include the Omni-USDT, "said Wertheimer.

But Watkins responded quickly, claiming that the conclusion would not change in any case. "The USDT transferred to Omni has decreased significantly since a good portion has migrated to Ethereum," Watkin said.

"In addition, the amount of value transferred to Ethereum is slightly underestimated because it includes only the best stablecoins for which CoinMetrics provides data and not all Ethereum-based tokens," he said. According to his "transparency" page, Tether claims to have nearly $ 4.9 billion on Ethereum, while he has $ 1.55 billion on Omni.

New record

In his tweet thread, Watkins also noted that stablecoins have had their best quarter to date. The issue in the first quarter of this year, he said, has "inflated over $ 8 billion", adding almost as much to the market capitalization of the category in the first quarter compared to all of 2019.

"Over the past two years, many stablecoin issuers have created stablecoin on Ethereum thanks to its flexible token standards that allow for simple issuance and interoperability," according to Watkins.

“These stablecoins have grown so much that they are now widely used as money on the Ethereum blockchain. Instead of sending and receiving value in ETH, which is volatile, users can send value in stablecoins which are stable against the US dollar, "said the researcher.