Ethereum researchers are debating whether ETH should be viewed as money like Bitcoin. In a recent talk, Ethereum Foundation researcher Mike Neuder presented ETH's key attributes as a permissionless, programmable asset and resilient decentralized currency. He stressed its intrinsic safeguards for property rights, censorship resistance, and self-sovereignty within the Ethereum ecosystem. Neuder criticized centralized stablecoins for lacking true property rights and highlighted ETH's distinctiveness in on-chain finance. The discussion also included Ethereum's inflation model post-Merge, revealing an inflation rate close to 0.9%, comparable to Bitcoin's 0.8%. The adaptive issuance model aids long-term security, but Neuder warned that frequent changes could undermine confidence in ETH's stability. Neuder emphasized the importance of the blob burn effect from layer-2 activities, which increases ETH's deflationary pressure. Despite differing views within the community regarding ETH's role as sound money, Neuder underscored Ethereum's commitment to credible neutrality and censorship resistance, maintaining that ETH embodies a form of digital money rooted in self-sovereignty.

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