The growth of blockchain technology has been reaching new heights, drawing comparisons to some of the more traditional payment giants, such as Visa. As an example, recent data from Coingraph showed that Ethereum processed $3.01 trillion in transactions, closely following Visa which processed $3.08 trillion. This demonstrates the mainstream adoption of this nascent technology, which has historically been perceived as a medium for scammers and cybercriminals.
Ethereum, being the second-largest blockchain network with a current market capitalization of $227.8 billion, has become the backbone of numerous financial technology solutions aiming to disrupt the global finance market. These solutions encompass decentralized finance (DeFi), staking, lending, and flash loans, to name a few. Ethereum’s versatility and room for further development are some of the advantages it holds over traditional financial platforms.
Last year, Ethereum processed 4.5 times more transactions than Visa in 2021, with a reported trading volume surpassing Visa’s at $11.6 trillion. Ethereum’s daily transactions stand at 968,996 as of May 28, highlighting its growing usage among users.
The popular blockchain has already been adopted by several established players, such as Visa, seeking to leverage the technology. Visa utilized Ethereum’s Goerli testnet to experiment with transaction-free payments, courtesy of a smart contract called Paymaster. Paymaster allows the company to perform complex tasks on behalf of accounts and manage transaction costs through account abstraction.
ERC-4337, an Ethereum standard to achieve account abstraction without a consensus-layer change, enables users to bundle and automate transactions on the network. Visa believes that this standard could pave the way for transforming user engagement with digital currencies and assets.
In late 2021, Visa released a proposal to allow Ethereum users to make programmable payments autonomously, without third-party involvement. Visa has also reiterated its commitment to cryptocurrencies, despite market fluctuations and uncertain conditions.
In conclusion, the rapid growth and adoption of blockchain technology, especially Ethereum, are challenging traditional payment giants like Visa. Its versatility, room for expansion, and ability to integrate with current systems such as Visa’s Goerli testnet showcase the potential for blockchain to revolutionize the global finance market. As prominent players continue exploring the possibilities and advantages, blockchain is proving itself a force to be reckoned with.
Source: Cryptonews
