Ethereum Classic (ETC) has recently caught some flack from Cardano founder Charles Hoskinson. The digital asset, which is basically a fork of the original Ethereum token, has always come under criticism which has often hindered its growth. However, this time around, the cryptocurrency seems to have embodied the saying that there is no such thing as bad publicity and has rallied off the back of the criticism to post some impressive gains.

Hoskinson Blasts Ethereum Classic

Ethereum Classic on its own was supposed to be what ‘Ethereum was originally meant to be.’ However, as time would have it, the two would go various ways in the market, and Ethereum would become the second-largest cryptocurrency by market cap. This did not mean that Ethereum Classic was devoid of any success but has never been able to live up to its supposed potential. This is where Cardano founder Charles Hoskinson focused his criticism on.

Taking to Twitter, Hoskinson lamented the sluggish growth of Ethereum Classic. He responded to a tweet that referenced a proposed 20% tax that was put forward by a board that the Cardano founder was a part of.  Basically, this was to be able to develop a sustainable fund that would help in the further development of the network. 

ETC surges above $40 | Source: ETCUSD on TradingView.com

The founder stated that the state of the cryptocurrency made him sad. According to Hoskinson, Ethereum Classic was a project that had a lot of promise that never really went anywhere. “It’s a dead project with no purpose or real compelling argument to exist outside of spite,” he added.

Usually, comments such as the one being made by Hoskinson have been known to have adverse effects on the trajectory of a cryptocurrency. This was not the case with Ethereum Classic. Instead of actually reversing as expected, the price of Ethereum Classic actually exploded following this.

ETC has been one of the biggest winners in the recent rally, and the digital asset does not look ready to give up its crown anytime soon. Its price is now up more than 26% in the last 24 hours alone, and it’s up 18% on a 7-day basis, now listed as the top gainer on Coinmarketcap.

It is also important to keep in mind that activity on the network has grown significantly during this time. ETC’s hashrate has touched another all-time high with 41.9981 TH/s on Monday. Its hashrate is now up almost 100% in the last month alone. 

Ethereum Classic’s recent surge has sent its price above $40 once more, and this has brought its market cap to $5.5 billion. It is now the 17th largest cryptocurrency by market cap, ahead of popular tokens such as UNI, LTC, and FTT.