Ethereum Offshoot Token Tumbles After Forking From Blockchain

The additional cryptocurrency token that investors received after the Ethereum blockchain transitioned to a new method of handling transactions has tumbled as much as 60% since it began trading late Thursday.

EthereumPOW, as the offshoot is known, represents the legacy computing operations of the blockchain that chose not to participate in the software upgrade dubbed the Merge. Ethereum moved from a so-called proof-of-work system to a more energy efficient proof-of-stake method for securing the network.

The cryptocurrency was listed at a price of as much as $33, according to data from CoinMarketCap.com over the past 24 hours, and on exchanges such as FTX before Ether holders received the token. It was trading at about $10.85 as of 13:39 p.m. in New York. Ether, the native currency of the blockchain, fell for a fifth day, dropping as much as 6% to $1,413.

“Ethereum proof-of-work does not have support from users, developers, institutions, and even most miners,” said Kunal Goel, a Mumbai-based research analyst at Messari. “It is likely going to fade to irrelevance as all other forks without community support in history like Bitcoin Cash, Bitcoin Satoshi’s Vision, and Ethereum Classic.”

The first few hours after the launch of ETHW, as the token is called, will be chaotic as all stable coins and pegged assets fall to zero and users rush to exchange their tokens, Goel said.