Binance Completes Token Swap: Is BNB An Ethereum Killer Now?

The transition started at 10 AM (UTC+8) on April 23 and finished within hours — with Binance DEX going live to great fanfare from the Binance fans. The customers of the Binance-branded decentralized exchange now have access to various services — including its Web Wallet, Explorer, REST API, and Accelerated Nodes. Cryptocurrency users may open a wallet and register with the exchange. However, there are no listed trading pairs and, consequently, no trading activity on the exchange. The listing timeline will be announced later, according to the official press release. In a separate note, the exchange recommends refraining from listing tokens during at the early stage as the network needs time to become more stable in order to accommodate the projects wishing to be present on the exchange.

Binance Coin (BNB): From ERC-20 to BEP2

The exchange opened deposits and withdrawals of Binance Coin (BNB) as soon as the swap completed. According to the announcement, users are still allowed to deposit Ethereum-based BNB tokens to their Binance accounts. However, they will be automatically converted from ERC-20 standard tokens to BEP2 coins — the original standard of Binance Chain. Ahead of the swap, Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao said that the exchange had burned five million ERC-20-based BNB tokens and, thus, initiated the transition.

Just burned 5mm ERC20 BNB, commencing swap to the real #BNB.

— CZ Binance (@cz_binance) April 23, 2019

Is Binance Coin an Ethereum Killer?

The launch of Binance Chain has provoked a lot of discussions about the outcomes for the Ethereum (ETH) blockchain. Many users see Binance Coin (BNB) as a potential Ethereum killer while noting that various projects will benefit from issuing their coins on Binance Chain.

$BNB is going to have a devastating effect on $ETH and send it back to double digits

There is almost no benefit of choosing $ETH over Binance chain aside from a bit more decentralization. Projects moving to Binance Chain will receive a ton of attention, listings, + more…

— CryptoGat 🤠 (@TheGemClub) April 18, 2019

However, Changpeng Zhao noted that Ethereum and BNB can co-exist — as both projects have their unique features and benefits. Specifically, the head of Binance pointed out that Binance DEX does not have smart contracts functionality. It was created to challenge the hegemony of centralized exchanges, while Ethereum is designed to be a world computer.

I like the positivity for #bnb 🙏🙏🙏, but we really don't have to diss any other coin. #eth can do much more than #bnb in features. Let's grow together. 🤝🤝🤝 https://t.co/26a2T0Om3x

— CZ Binance (@cz_binance) April 22, 2019

Do you think Binance Chain poses a threat to Ethereum? Will they coexist peacefully, or is the blockchain industry is too small to accommodate them both? Let us know what you think in the comments below.