Ethereum's Dominance: Why Better Tech Isn't Always Enough

The QWERTY keyboard layout was designed in 1873 to slow down typists and prevent jams on early metal arms. Despite being a worse design, it became the standard and has remained so for over 150 years.

Crypto works similarly, where the network with the most money tends to prevail over better-designed alternatives.

Ethereum (ETH), launched in 2015, is an example of this phenomenon. It's slow compared to newer networks like Solana (SOL), which can clear thousands of trades per second and costs a fraction of the cost.

However, Ethereum holds over 55% of the $87.7 billion locked in decentralized finance (DeFi) apps, while Solana has only 6.4%. Big institutions have also tokenized real-world assets on Ethereum, giving it an even greater advantage.