The world’s second-largest crypto is rallying.

Currently, two of the biggest names in cryptocurrency are Bitcoin, the forerunner and trendsetter of the practice, and Dogecoin, the mysterious meme coin that has defied the odds and shot up to unprecedented highs. But while these two cryptos have taken center stage, other coins have been steadily gaining strength in the background, and one of them has just broken an impressive milestone.

Ethereum, the second-largest cryptocurrency in the world, experienced an impressive rally this morning as it exceeded $4,000 in valuation for the first time. In the last day, the value of a single Ether token rose by 6.7% to $4,141.99. Thanks to that, Ethereum now has a total market value of $476.3 billion, a little less than half of Bitcoin’s market value of $1.1 trillion.

Ethereum works slightly differently from Bitcoin; while Bitcoin is intended to be the crypto equivalent of investing in gold, Ethereum promotes decentralized finance, a practice that involves recreating financial practices and process in a digital format using blockchain technology. The goal of this is to create a digital commerce space that isn’t regulated by a single governing body, hence the use of the word “decentralized.”

Ethereum, the world's second-largest cryptocurrency, soars above $4,000 for the first time https://t.co/4Q6HBBL7kw

— CNBC (@CNBC) May 10, 2021

Crypto fever has swept the investing scene in the last several months as interest in its trading has continued to bloom. Ethereum’s value jumped 40% in April as more crypto investors have sprung up and branched out off of Bitcoin in search of more accessible entry points into the scene. Even major companies like Tesla, Goldman Sachs, and Morgan Stanley have been putting a greater emphasis on crypto exchange, both in terms of investments and customer relations. However, many investors are still highly skeptical of the concept, believing it to be a massive bubble in the making due its somewhat poorly defined parameters.