以太坊（ETH）与比特币（BTC）：现在更适合购买哪种加密货币？

过去 12 个月里，比特币（BTC 0.37%）的价格上涨了一倍多，创下历史新高。推动这一涨势的四大催化剂：比特币的批准

As Bitcoin (BTC 0.37%) soared more than 100% over the past 12 months to hit a record high, several catalysts fueled that rally.

随着比特币（BTC 0.37%）在过去 12 个月内飙升超过 100% 并创下历史新高，多种催化剂推动了这一涨势。

The approvals of Bitcoin's first spot price exchange-traded funds (ETFs) in January, its latest four-year halving in April, the Federal Reserve's two interest rate cuts, and Trump's victory in the presidential election all played a role in that historic price surge.

比特币第一只现货价格交易所交易基金（ETF）在 1 月份获得批准、4 月份最新的四年减半、美联储的两次降息以及特朗普在总统选举中的胜利都在历史性的价格飙升中发挥了作用。

The ETFs made it easier for mainstream and institutional investors to invest in Bitcoin, the halving lowered Bitcoin's supply growth rate by reducing the rewards for mining in half, and the Fed's rate cuts will likely drive investors back toward cryptocurrencies, growth stocks, and more speculative investments. Trump's incoming administration is also expected to reverse the Biden administration's restrictions on the crypto market.

ETF让主流和机构投资者更容易投资比特币，减半通过将挖矿奖励减少一半而降低了比特币的供应增长率，而美联储的降息可能会促使投资者重新转向加密货币、成长型股票和更具投机性的股票投资。特朗普即将上任的政府也有望扭转拜登政府对加密货币市场的限制。

Those tailwinds certainly make the world's top cryptocurrency an attractive investment right now. But as Bitcoin hovers near its record highs, investors can also consider investing in smaller cryptocurrencies still trading below their all-time highs. Let's take a closer look at Ethereum (ETH 3.99%), the world's second-most valuable cryptocurrency, to see whether it fits the profile as a more compelling buy than Bitcoin right now.

这些有利因素无疑使世界顶级加密货币目前成为一项有吸引力的投资。但随着比特币徘徊在历史高点附近，投资者也可以考虑投资仍低于历史高点的较小型加密货币。让我们仔细看看世界第二大加密货币以太坊（ETH 3.99%），看看它是否符合目前比比特币更有吸引力的购买条件。

The key differences between Bitcoin and Ethereum

比特币和以太坊之间的主要区别

Bitcoin is a proof-of-work (PoW) token that must be digitally mined with power-hungry ASIC (application-specific integrated circuit) miners. It has a finite supply of 21 million coinns, and almost 20 million of them have already been mined.

比特币是一种工作量证明 (PoW) 代币，必须使用耗电的 ASIC（专用集成电路）矿机进行数字挖矿。它的供应量有限，为 2100 万枚，其中近 2000 万枚已被开采。

The difficulty of mining Bitcoin, which doubles with each four-year halving, is gradually slowing down that process. The last Bitcoin will likely be mined by 2140. That scarcity makes it more similar to gold, silver, and other precious metals than other cryptocurrencies.

比特币的开采难度每四年减半就会增加一倍，这正在逐渐减缓这一过程。最后一枚比特币可能会在 2140 年被开采出来。这种稀缺性使其更类似于黄金、白银和其他贵金属，而不是其他加密货币。

Ethereum, which hosts ether as its native token, was once a PoW blockchain like Bitcoin. But in 2022, it transitioned to the more energy-efficient proof-of-stake (PoS) mechanism in a process called The Merge.

以太坊以以太币作为其原生代币，曾经是像比特币一样的 PoW 区块链。但在 2022 年，它通过一个名为“合并”的过程过渡到更节能的权益证明 (PoS) 机制。

PoS tokens like Ethereum's can't be mined. Instead, its investors "stake" (or lock up) their tokens on the blockchain to earn interest-like rewards. Unlike PoW blockchains, PoS blockchains also support smart contracts, which are used to develop decentralized apps (dApps), non-fungible tokens (NFTs), and other crypto assets. That's why ether's value is often pegged to Ethereum's popularity among developers, while Bitcoin is more frequently valued by its scarcity.

像以太坊这样的 PoS 代币无法被开采。相反，其投资者将他们的代币“质押”（或锁定）在区块链上，以获得类似利息的奖励。与 PoW 区块链不同，PoS 区块链还支持智能合约，用于开发去中心化应用程序 (dApp)、不可替代代币 (NFT) 和其他加密资产。这就是为什么以太币的价值通常与以太坊在开发者中的受欢迎程度挂钩，而比特币则更经常因其稀缺性而受到重视。

Ether doesn't have a supply limit, and there are roughly 120 million tokens in circulation right now. It became deflationary after The Merge two years ago, but its fee-reducing Dencun upgrade this year made it inflationary again. Ethereum investors try to limit its supply by periodically burning (removing from circulation) a lot of tokens -- but that process isn't as predictable or transparent as Bitcoin's scheduled halvings.

以太币没有供应限制，目前流通中的代币数量约为 1.2 亿。两年前合并后，它变得通货紧缩，但今年其费用降低的Dencun升级使其再次通胀。以太坊投资者试图通过定期销毁（从流通中移除）大量代币来限制其供应，但这一过程并不像比特币预定的减半那样可预测或透明。

Why has Ethereum underperformed Bitcoin?

为什么以太坊的表现落后于比特币？

Ethereum's price has rallied more than 50% during the past 12 months, but it underperformed Bitcoin and remains about 40% below its all-time high.

以太坊的价格在过去 12 个月中上涨了 50% 以上，但其表现落后于比特币，仍比历史高点低约 40%。

Ethereum's first spot price ETFs were approved and started trading this July, but they didn't generate as much buzz as Bitcoin's ETFs. Ether also didn't seem to attract as many bulls as Bitcoin did as interest rates declined, but it rallied alongside Bitcoin and the broader crypto market after the presidential election ended.

以太坊首个现货价格 ETF 于今年 7 月获得批准并开始交易，但它们并没有像比特币 ETF 那样引起如此大的关注。随着利率下降，以太币似乎也没有像比特币那样吸引那么多的多头，但在总统选举结束后，它与比特币和更广泛的加密市场一起上涨。

Two near-term challenges could be holding Ethereum back. First, it faces stiff competition from newer and faster PoS blockchains like Solana (SOL -0.33%) and Cardano (ADA 1.72%). Second, its growing supply is throttling its price growth.

两个近期挑战可能会阻碍以太坊的发展。首先，它面临着来自 Solana (SOL -0.33%) 和 Cardano (ADA 1.72%) 等更新更快的 PoS 区块链的激烈竞争。其次，其不断增长的供应正在抑制其价格增长。

But over the long term, some other tailwinds could kick in. Ethereum's next upgrade, "The Verge," will enhance its security features and lower its hardware requirements so it can run on smaller devices like smartwatches and Internet of Things (IoT) devices. UBS (UBS -2.24%) also recently launched its first tokenized fund on Ethereum's blockchain, which suggests it's still a more stable PoS platform than Solana or Cardano.

但从长远来看，其他一些有利因素可能会发挥作用。以太坊的下一个升级“The Verge”将增强其安全功能并降低其硬件要求，以便它可以在智能手表和物联网（IoT）设备等较小的设备上运行。瑞银 (UBS -2.24%) 最近还在以太坊区块链上推出了首个代币化基金，这表明它仍然是一个比 Solana 或 Cardano 更稳定的 PoS 平台。

Some bullish investors expect Ethereum to soar. VanEck's Matthew Sigel and Patrick Bush expect its price to quadruple to $11,800 by 2030, while Ark Invest's Cathie Wood believes it could soar more than 5,600% to $166,000 by 2032.

一些看涨的投资者预计以太坊将飙升。 VanEck 的 Matthew Sigel 和 Patrick Bush 预计，到 2030 年，其价格将翻两番，达到 11,800 美元，而 Ark Invest 的 Cathie Wood 认为，到 2032 年，其价格可能会飙升 5,600% 以上，达到 166,000 美元。

However, I personally think it's still smarter to buy Bitcoin instead of Ethereum

不过，我个人认为购买比特币仍然比购买以太坊更明智

Bitcoin is like digital gold, so its value should stabilize and rise against most fiat currencies. Ethereum tokens are still inflationary

比特币就像数字黄金，因此其价值相对于大多数法定货币应该会稳定并上涨。以太坊代币仍然存在通货膨胀