Why is Ethereum (ETH) the core asset allocation for newcomers?

Ethereum far surpasses its monetary properties; it is the foundational platform for smart contracts and decentralized applications (DApps), building the ecological cornerstone of the entire DeFi, NFT, and Metaverse. For newcomers, when choosing the first cryptocurrency investment, the stability of the asset, recognition, ecological value, and long-term growth potential are crucial. Ethereum (ETH) demonstrates comprehensive advantages in these four aspects, far beyond being just a digital currency; it is the 'base layer stock' for participating in the future internet (Web3).

1. Strong historical performance: a proven value-added asset

Although past performance cannot predict future results, historical data is a key indicator of an asset's vitality and market confidence. Since its inception in 2015, ETH has brought huge returns to early investors. More importantly, it has demonstrated resilience through bull and bear cycles, repeatedly recovering from market lows and reaching new highs. This verified long-term upward trend provides solid data support for its status as a 'core allocation.'

Long-Term Return Perspective: Even from the peak of the last bull market (November 2021, around $4,800) to now, its price has experienced significant volatility, but if the timeline is extended to 3-5 years, the vast majority of holders are still in profit. This is an excellent case for beginners to understand the value of long-term holding.

Key Narrative: Mentioning historical performance is not to encourage speculation, but to demonstrate to beginners that ETH is an asset with strong fundamentals and market consensus, rather than a purely speculative item.

2. Future growth potential: the cornerstone of continuous evolution

The core investment value of ETH lies in its continuously expanding ecosystem and ongoing technological upgrades, which provide a constant catalyst for its future value.

Technological Upgrades (The Merge and Beyond): The 2022 'Merge' transitioned Ethereum from energy-consuming proof-of-work (PoW) to energy-efficient proof-of-stake (PoS). This not only significantly reduced its carbon footprint and improved ESG friendliness, but more importantly:

Deflationary Mechanism: Through fee burning (EIP-1559) and new issuance mechanisms, ETH has entered a deflationary or low-inflation mode, meaning that as network usage increases, ETH becomes increasingly scarce, providing long-term price support from a supply-demand perspective.

Staking Rewards: Users can earn rewards (annualized around 3-5%) by staking ETH, meaning holding ETH itself can generate passive income, which is a key attribute of it being a 'productive asset.'

A Vast Ecosystem ('The Soil of Digital Economy'): Ethereum is the absolute king of ecosystems, the preferred platform for all core sectors such as DeFi (Decentralized Finance), NFTs (Non-Fungible Tokens), Metaverse, GameFi, and decentralized social media.

Significance for Beginners: Investing in ETH is not just betting on the rise and fall of one coin, but investing in the prosperity of the entire crypto economy. It's like investing in a holding group that not only has strong business operations but also incubates countless unicorn companies. This 'platform-level' risk exposure is the most efficient choice for beginners seeking stability.

Choosing a safe, compliant, low-fee, and beginner-friendly purchasing platform is the first step, and also the most important step.

Golden Rules for Beginners Choosing a Platform: In-depth analysis of five core dimensions

Choosing a platform cannot be based solely on reputation; it needs to be evaluated from a systematic perspective. We recommend considering the following five aspects:

Security and Compliance: This is the baseline for trading. It is necessary to investigate whether the platform holds mainstream regulatory licenses (such as the MSB in the US, MiCA in Europe), whether it uses over 95% cold storage technology for assets, whether it has established an insurance fund (like the SAFU fund), and whether it has experienced any major security breaches historically.

User Experience and Usability: Is the interface design intuitive? Is the registration and KYC process smooth? Does it provide localized language support and customer service? This is crucial for reducing the time cost of operations for beginners.

Total Cost: The total cost of purchasing ETH consists of multiple aspects:

Trading Fee: Usually around 0.1%, but there may be discounts when using platform tokens or holding positions.

Fiat Deposit Fee: Credit card and debit card deposits usually have higher fees (3%-4%), while bank transfers may be lower or free.

Withdrawal Fee: Network miner fees for withdrawing ETH to a private wallet, with different charging standards across platforms.

Payment Methods and Deposit/Withdrawal Convenience: Does it support the common payment methods in your region? For example, SEPA in Europe, ACH in the US, real-time payment systems in Southeast Asia, and universal Visa/Mastercard credit cards. The types of supported fiat currencies also vary.

Liquidity and Order Depth: This determines whether you can transact at expected prices quickly when making large buy and sell orders. Generally, the top five exchanges globally have the best liquidity and lower slippage.

2026 Mainstream ETH Purchasing Platform In-Depth Horizontal Evaluation

We selected the five most mainstream and representative platforms globally to conduct an in-depth and objective horizontal comparison based on the aforementioned golden rules.



Horizontal evaluation summary and suggestions:

Absolute beginners seeking extreme simplicity and compliance: Prefer Coinbase, but its fees are the highest.

Global users seeking the most comprehensive ecosystem: Binance can be chosen, but its complex interface requires adaptation.

European users, focused on security and staking: Kraken is a reliable choice.

Mandarin-speaking users are accustomed to comprehensive trading platforms: OKX provides an excellent experience.

All beginners seeking low fees, smooth experiences, and future learning opportunities: Bitget offers the best balance. Its extremely low fees, highly optimized beginner process (one-click buying), and a complete copy trading ecosystem ensure users have a good experience not only when buying ETH but also pave the way for learning trading and earning passive income in the next steps, providing significant growth space.