Ethereum made smart contracts a common part of the blockchain conversation.
Smart contracts are programming tools that let developers write self-executing scripts that run on the Ethereum blockchain.
One, perhaps unforeseen, consequence was that Ethereums smart contracts enabled the initial coin offering (ICO).
Unfortunately, manyICOs revealed themselves to be little more than money-making scams.
Nevertheless, Ethereum has remained at the forefront of the market since launching in July 2015.
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This year could be pivotal for the Ethereum blockchain.
ETH/USD 2018 recap
Ethereums price, like many cryptocurrencies, had a positive 2017.
Sadly though, it wasnt the same story in 2018.
In 2017, Ethereum closed the year having made gains of over 8,000 percent.
In 2018 however, its trading price dropped by 90 percent over the course of the year.
A few days later, however, a market correction caused its price to drop by 18 percent.
It closed the year at a hair over $100, 93 percent down on its January high.
ETH/USD 2019 Q1 review
Its been an uneventful first quarter in 2019 for Ethereums price.
On January 9, a market correction saw the price enter a month-long downward trend.
It hovered around this price for the rest of the month, closing the quarter at $140.
Over the course of the quarter, the coin grew by 2 percent.
It might not be much but its growth nonetheless.
Ethereum is also facing usership issues.
Of thetop 50 dapps on DappRadar.com, only three use the Ethereum blockchain.
Many developersseemingly favor the EOS and TRON platforms.
Put otherwise, he wants to ensure the cost of running a node doesnt become prohibitively expensive.
The Ethereum community is also beginning to challenge just how theplatform is governedtoo.
It might sound like Ethereum is on a knife-edge going into Q2.
Looking forward into Q2
As soon as Q2 opened, cryptocurrency prices across the market went skyward.
Indeed, its a strong start but Ethereum is facing many challenges.
Whether this strength will continue remains to be seen.
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Story byMatthew Beedham
Matthew is the editor of SHIFT.
He likes electric cars, and other things with wheels, wings, or hulls.
