The price of Ethereum is down against Bitcoin and Solana at levels not seen in years, prompting some critics to predict Ether’s “death” on social media.

Ethereum bulls have been forced to defend against a wave of slander on Crypto X after some critics noticed the price of Ether (ETH) has been lagging against Bitcoin (BTC) and other strong-performing altcoins as of late.

The Ethereum to Bitcoin price chart — a measure of 1 Ether against 1 Bitcoin, temporarily fell below 0.05 BTC on Dec. 20, its lowest level in two years (since April 28, 2021), according to CoinMarketCap.

During the last bull market, the ratio went up to a peak of 0.087 BTC on Sept. 12, 2021, but has trended downward since. At the start of 2023, the ratio sat around 0.072 but has also fallen since then.

Critics on social media appear to be pointing the finger at Ethereum’s transaction fees, which they say have made it more enticing for crypto users to try competitor chains with lower fees.

“Ethereum is broken. You don’t have to pay those fees anymore. You have options,” said Bitcoin proponent Jason A. Williams on Dec. 20.

Data from BitInfoCharts shows that fees on Ethereum averaged out at around $11 on Dec. 19, though Bitcoin fees are still pricier at approximately $32. On the other hand, Solana’s fees are consistently under $0.01, according to CoinCodex.

Even Vitalik Buterin, one of the creators of Ethereum, recently said Ethereum will ultimately “fail” unless transaction fees become cheaper, particularly during bull markets.

But other Ethereum bulls have been quick to come to its defense.

Anthony Sassano, host of the Ethereum show The Daily Gwei was adamant Ethereum is undervalued in the current market, while Bankless co-host Ryan Sean Adams said he’s “gobsmacked” at the negative sentiment he’s seen on Ethereum:

“I never anticipated ETH would be viewed as non-consensus underdog again, yet here we are. Long ETH 2024."

Source - Coin Telegraph