Wall Street is moving past crypto pilots and deeper into Ethereum, says Etherealize founder

Ethereum is potentially gaining real traction with institutional investors, moving from discussion to actual use, according to Vivek Raman, the founder of Etherealize, a firm focused on connecting Ethereum with the financial world.

Following several years of testing, he noted that major banks and financial companies are now starting to use public blockchains as a core part of their systems, instead of just viewing them as something new and experimental.

Raman explained that initially, their work was simply an experiment – a cautious first step. Now, they’re ready to fully embrace public blockchains, seeing them as essential infrastructure, much like the internet itself.

This change shows how Wall Street’s perspective on Ethereum is evolving. While stablecoins were initially the main way institutions started using the technology, experts like Raman note interest is now growing in tokenizing assets like stocks, bonds, property, and investment funds. Because Ethereum currently leads in stablecoin use, provides strong liquidity, and is favored by institutional investors, it’s creating a powerful network effect that continues to draw in traditional finance companies.

Ethereum initially became popular as a central place for trading, and now people are interested in expanding that to include other types of assets like stocks, bonds, and even real estate, he explained.

Despite increasing interest from institutions, Ethereum’s price hasn’t risen as expected, which has disappointed many investors. Raman believes this is mainly due to when these institutions started showing interest.

He explained that sales to larger organizations take a significant amount of time. The necessary infrastructure is ready, but they’re waiting for more digital assets to be transferred onto the blockchain.

He explained that Ethereum is currently moving from a building phase to one where it needs wider use. While the basic technology is mostly in place, its value hasn’t fully caught up yet. He predicts that as more digital assets are created and used directly on Ethereum, people will start to recognize how important ETH is for keeping the network secure, which should then impact its price.

“When you look at the headlines in retrospect, it’ll be: the global financial system’s internet moment happened on Ethereum,” he said.

Raman defended the Ethereum Foundation against recent criticisms about its leadership transitions and changing responsibilities. He believes the Foundation’s decision to allow others more control is actually a strength, not a weakness.

He explained that no single entity should dominate the foundation of our financial system, emphasizing its global and readily available nature. He believes the necessary components are in place and it’s time to allow the system to operate independently.

Raman thinks the foundation shouldn’t try to control everything, but instead concentrate on protecting what’s most important about Ethereum: its security, ability to resist censorship, privacy features, and open standards. They should also keep working on future improvements like zero-knowledge technology and defenses against quantum computing.

Ultimately, Raman said, Ethereum’s success will be measured less by price and more by adoption.

He believes the ultimate goal of a blockchain should be having active users, valuable assets, and real-world applications.