Prominent cryptocurrency analyst and Bitcoin S2F model developer PlanB recently criticized Ethereum on the X platform, calling it a “centralized, pre-mined, proof-of-stake (PoS) coin with arbitrary changes to its supply schedule” garbage coin.
(Background: Ethereum Foundation extinguishes fire: Vitalik’s “de-EVM proposal” has a significant impact! But ultimately, the community decides)
(Context: Is abandoning miners Ethereum’s downfall? Analysis: After Ethereum’s shift to PoS in 2022, “funding attention has been decreasing.”)
PlanB’s Strong Criticism
Cryptocurrency analyst and Bitcoin Stock-to-Flow (S2F) model developer PlanB made strong criticisms of Ethereum (ETH) on April 20, 2025, on the social platform X. He retweeted a post from Ethereum founder Vitalik Buterin, which criticized the S2F model in June 2022, using it as a chance to retaliate against Ethereum, describing it as a “centralized, pre-mined, proof-of-stake (PoS) coin with arbitrary changes to its supply schedule” garbage coin. PlanB stated in his tweet:
Ethereum is really not looking good now. I know it’s impolite to gloat and all that, but I think shitcoins like ETH, that are centralized & premined, have PoS instead of PoW, switch supply schedule at will, are harmful and deserve all the mockery they get.
Focus of PlanB’s Criticism
In his interactions with the community, PlanB’s criticisms primarily focused on the following aspects:
- First, he believes that Ethereum’s “pre-mining” through initial coin offerings (ICOs) allocated a significant amount of ETH to early investors and developers before the network launched, which differs from Bitcoin’s fair distribution model and does not align with the spirit of decentralization.
- Secondly, he questioned Ethereum’s decision to transition from proof-of-work (PoW) to proof-of-stake (PoS) after the “Merge” in 2022, asserting that this concentrated power in the hands of a few large holders, further exacerbating centralization risks.
- Additionally, he criticized the lack of rigidity in Ethereum’s supply schedule, where developers can arbitrarily adjust the issuance of ETH, contrasting sharply with Bitcoin’s fixed supply of 21 million coins.
In summary, PlanB believes these issues indicate that Ethereum’s level of centralization far exceeds that of Bitcoin, even failing to guarantee basic security and decentralization principles.
Community Reactions
PlanB’s comments quickly sparked intense discussions within the cryptocurrency community, with Bitcoin supporters and Ethereum supporters holding firm positions. Bitcoin supporters generally agreed with PlanB’s views, asserting that Ethereum has been plagued by centralization from its inception. Some even bluntly stated, “Holding Ethereum instead of more Bitcoin is my biggest mistake.”
On the other hand, Ethereum supporters countered that PlanB’s criticisms were overly one-sided, pointing out that he overlooked Ethereum’s innovative contributions in fields such as smart contracts, decentralized finance (DeFi), and non-fungible tokens (NFTs). Some users defended Ethereum by arguing that its underperformance is due to global liquidity contraction rather than proof-of-stake or other terms favored by Bitcoin extremists, asserting that Ethereum’s value should not solely be based on price performance but rather on the long-term potential of its ecosystem.
As for the author’s perspective, I consider PlanB’s comments to be somewhat biased. After all, Ethereum is arguably the most decentralized project after Bitcoin, while other top ten cryptocurrencies by market capitalization, such as XRP, SOL, and BNB, are even more centralized. Ultimately, the primary issue with Ethereum that the community criticizes still boils down to its poor price performance.
Stop lying. Ethereum is more decentralized than Bitcoin, as shown in the charts. The supply distribution means that the pre-mined amount has no bearing on the network’s value today. It’s not like a few people hold half the supply. The fact is, Ethereum’s underperformance is…
Related Reports
- Dominating to the point of creating enemies, is Ethereum still viable?
- Ethereum falls back to five years ago! “ETH/BTC” plunges below 0.02, reaching a new low since 2020, and community FUD continues.
- Paradigm CTO fires up the need for a new language for Ethereum, while Sui’s founder retorts: Solidity and EVM had issues as early as 2018.