Ethereum Classic has re-entered the spotlight as traders and miners position for Ethereum’s long-anticipated Merge. Because Ethereum Classic (ETC) shares the same Ethash proof-of-work architecture that Ethereum used before shifting away from mining, speculation has intensified that a portion of ETH miners could migrate to the ETC network. That narrative has coincided with a sharp market move: over the last two weeks, ETC rose 124.2% against the U.S. dollar, comfortably outperforming Ethereum’s own 45.7% gain during the same period.
The rally is significant, but it does not erase the broader drawdown ETC has suffered this year. Even after the surge, the asset was still down roughly 34% year to date and remained about 80% below its all-time high of $167 per coin. That contrast highlights the current setup around ETC: strong short-term momentum driven by event-based speculation, but a longer-term valuation profile still well below prior cycle peaks.
Merge speculation is feeding both price action and mining interest
The main catalyst described in the source material is the growing expectation that miners who previously focused on ETH may seek a new home once Ethereum finalizes its move away from proof-of-work. Since ETC runs on the same consensus family, it is widely seen as one of the most straightforward destinations for existing Ethash mining equipment.
That thesis appears to be reflected in network data. In mid-July, around the time a preliminary Merge date was penciled in, Ethereum Classic’s hashrate stood at 17.39 TH/s. By the time of the report, it had climbed to 20.88 TH/s, representing an increase of about 20%. The network also touched a weekly high of 21.41 TH/s, suggesting that more computing power was already moving toward the chain or being reactivated in anticipation of future profitability.
While ETC had not yet broken its historical record, the network was moving closer to that threshold. Its all-time high hashrate was recorded at 28.53 TH/s on May 7, 2021, at block height 12,695,074. If the current trend were to continue, ETC could potentially challenge or even surpass that previous peak. For market participants, this matters because hashrate is often treated as a rough indicator of miner commitment, network security, and confidence in a chain’s economic viability.
Low fees and PoW compatibility strengthen ETC’s appeal
Another factor supporting Ethereum Classic’s renewed relevance is transaction cost. According to the cited figures, Ethereum’s average fee was around 0.002 ETH, equivalent to approximately $3.31, while Ethereum Classic’s average fee was only 0.000096 ETC, or roughly $0.0031 per transfer. That makes ETC dramatically cheaper to use for simple transfers, at least on the metrics referenced in the article.
For users, lower fees can improve accessibility. For miners and speculators, however, the more important point may be ETC’s continuity as a proof-of-work chain at a time when Ethereum is moving in a different direction. In practical terms, ETC became a natural talking point in the market because it offers familiar mining dynamics just as ETH mining faces structural change.
KRW emerges as a major driver of ETC trading activity
Trading data in the report shows a market structure that is both concentrated and regionally notable. USDT was ETC’s largest trading pair, accounting for 59.17% of all volume. The second-largest share came from the South Korean won (KRW), which represented 20.82% of ETC trades. The U.S. dollar ranked third at 7.84%.
This means that more than one-fifth of Ethereum Classic’s trading activity was linked to Korean won markets, underlining the importance of South Korean demand during the asset’s rally. Exchange-level data reinforced that pattern. On Bithumb, approximately 11.53% of total platform volume was tied to ETC swaps. On Upbit, ETC trades against KRW accounted for an even larger 22.96% of exchange volume.
Such figures suggest that regional enthusiasm played a meaningful role in ETC’s breakout. In crypto markets, local trading concentration can amplify volatility and accelerate narrative-driven price moves. When combined with a strong catalyst like the Merge, concentrated participation from active retail markets can become a powerful short-term force.
ETC’s DeFi footprint remains tiny compared with Ethereum
Despite the bullish momentum in price and hashrate, Ethereum Classic’s application layer remains extremely small relative to Ethereum. The source notes that Ethereum held the largest total value locked in DeFi at $56.62 billion, accounting for more than 65% of the $87.56 billion locked across blockchain networks supporting DeFi protocols. By comparison, Ethereum Classic’s TVL on July 27 was just $175,483.
The gap is not only visible in capital formation but also in protocol count. Ethereum Classic had only three DeFi applications, versus 523 protocols on Ethereum. More than 92% of the value locked on ETC was concentrated in Hebeswap, an automated token exchange. The remainder, described as only $12,366, was spread across Etcswap and Swap Cat.
These numbers make it clear that ETC’s recent outperformance was not driven by a broad-based expansion in on-chain utility. Instead, the move appears to have been shaped primarily by mining rotation expectations, market sentiment, and speculative positioning around Ethereum’s transition. That does not necessarily invalidate the rally, but it does define its current character.
Supply dynamics and market size show ETC is still much smaller than ETH
The article also highlights a structural distinction between the two networks: supply design. Ethereum Classic has a fixed cap of 210,700,000 ETC. At the time of reporting, 136,026,596 ETC were already in circulation, leaving 74,673,404 ETC still to be mined. The source contrasts this with Ethereum’s uncapped issuance model.
From a market capitalization perspective, the size difference between the two assets remains enormous. Ethereum, the second-largest crypto asset by market value, represented about 17.7% of the roughly $1 trillion crypto economy, with a market cap of $193.36 billion. Ethereum Classic, by contrast, accounted for only 0.402% of that market, with a capitalization of approximately $4.39 billion.
That disparity matters because it frames ETC’s role in the market. Ethereum Classic may benefit from thematic flows tied to proof-of-work and miner migration, but it still operates on a much smaller economic base, with a far thinner application ecosystem and less institutional depth than Ethereum.
What the latest ETC move may signal
The recent jump in ETC’s price and hashrate suggests that the market is actively repricing the chain’s possible role in a post-Merge environment. If more miners continue to allocate hardware to ETC, the network could gain additional security and visibility. Over time, that might encourage more smart contract or DeFi development, as the source article notes. However, the current fundamentals show that any such ecosystem expansion remains prospective rather than established.
For now, Ethereum Classic’s resurgence is best understood as a convergence of three forces: Merge-driven speculation, rising miner interest, and strong trading activity led by USDT and KRW markets. Whether that momentum can persist will likely depend on whether ETC can convert temporary narrative strength into durable network usage and broader application growth.