This is a bit of a surprise. Paxful, a peer-to-peer platform for crypto, has decided to remove Ethereum, the second most popular crypto in the world, from its platform.
In a Tweet, Paxful founder and CEO Ray Youssef said they were choosing integrity over revenue, making 11.6 million humans safer.
We finally kicked #ethereum off our marketplace. 11.6m humans safer. Integrity over revenue 🤝🏽 Who is next ? pic.twitter.com/JTJXa5RYJ8
— Ray Youssef (@raypaxful) December 21, 2022
Ethereum will no longer be available as of December 22, 2022 (12:00 UTC).
Youssef cited Ethereum’s transition from proof of work (POW) to proof of stake (POS), declaring it no longer decentralized – controlled by a small group of users.
At the same time, Youssef states that Ethereum or ETH has some utility due to its ability to create digital assets. Yet these same digital assets have scammed people out of “billions.”
Ethereum has also stolen away momentum from Bitcoin – the words most popular crypto and one that is still proof of work.
Youssef acknowledged that his decision may not be popular but said it was the right thing to do as the “industry is under attack right now,” while acknowledging they will lose money.
It is interesting to note that decentralization is a key characteristic in the SEC’s determination as to whether or not a digital asset is a security. If it is sufficiently decentralized, like Bitcoin, the SEC claims that it is not. Some observers believe that Ethereum’s shift to POS puts it at greater risk of regulatory scrutiny – even while it is less energy-intensive in is network.