Peer-to-peer trading platform Paxful removed Ethereum (ETH) from its platform due to integrity issues caused by Ethereum's transition to a Proof-of-Stake (PoS) model.
In a recent newsletter, Ray Youssef, the CEO of Paxful, cited his reasons for removing Ethereum from Paxful. He claimed that Ethereum’s transition to a PoS consensus mechanism has turned it into “digital fiat.”
He added that Ethereum is no longer decentralized as it is controlled by a small group of people. Youssef’s statements were synonymous with Santiment’s report that revealed only two wallet addresses control nearly half of Ethereum’s PoS nodes.
Youssef acknowledged Ethereum’s lending and credit features. However, he criticized its tokenization model. According to him, tokens based on Ethereum have been used for committing frauds and scams that have “robbed people of billions.” He further stated,
“The [Ethereum-based tokens] have stolen valuable momentum away from Bitcoin and cost us years on our mission.”
Meanwhile, the CEO of Paxful praised Bitcoin's Proof-of-Work (PoW) model, adding,
“Proof-of-work is the innovation that makes Bitcoin the only honest money there is.”
He has also denied the notion that Paxful will only support Bitcoin (BTC). He claimed the platform will continue supporting stablecoins Tether (USDT) and USD Coin (USDC).
Following FTX’s collapse, Youssef has actively pressed for holding Bitcoin and other tokens in self-custodial wallets. He stressed that although Paxful has had Proof-of-Reserves since 2020, users should rely on storing their assets in self-custody.
