Su Zhu, CEO and founder of Singapore-based hedge fund Three Arrows Capital (3AC), has abandoned ether, citing issues related to the network's expensive transaction fees. This scares away newcomers to the crypto market, he points out.

According to the expert, he refused to use the world’s second-largest cryptocurrency "despite supporting it in the past". "Zero newcomers can afford the chain," Su Zhu added.

The analyst accused ether of suffering from the so-called "founder’s dilemma". "Everyone is already far too rich to remember what they originally set out to do," Su Zhu said. "Users are livid that they’re promised a vision of the future, then told that they have to pay $100 to $1,000 per transaction to enjoy it."

The head of 3AC concurs with founder of crypto data firm Messari Ryan Selkis, who is confident that only accredited users can benefit from the Ethereum network. "It doesn’t matter if Ethereum is a security anymore because the only people who can afford to use it are accredited anyway. I love ETH but it takes $10k to test a few new products and learn the ropes," Selkis emphasized.

Later, Su Zhu watered down his criticism of ether, clarifying that he was not going to abandon the digital asset. "There are great teams working on scaling Eth on L2," he noted. Besides, the expert added he would like to see eth1x roadmap and a series of updates that are "focusing on users rather than holders welfare."

Earlier, ether was often criticized for its high transaction costs. Last month, the average transaction fee exceeded $50. The current fee on the ETH network is $39 per transaction.