The ether cryptocurrency is run by the ethereum network, which is the second largest after bitcoin. Dado Ruvic/Reuters
Since August 5, when the ethereum fees system was restructured, more than $140 million worth of ether have been burned.
Many investors have been excited by the EIP-1559 changes, which helped drive the ether price up 17%.
The asset is still volatile. It lost half of its value between May-June and then rebounded.
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Since August 5, when the fees system was overhauled on the ether network, more than $144 million has been spent on ether.
According to Watch the Burn tracking website, more than 45,799 Ethereum had been consumed as of Sunday. This was at an average rate of 3.15 tokens per hour. At Sunday's $3,163 price, the total amount of ether burned was more than $144 million.
The August 5th ethereum upgrade (codenamed EIP-1559) significantly altered the fees system on the network.
Many investors were excited by the "fee burn" that it introduced. Instead of using the auction system, users now pay a flat fee to have transactions processed by miners.
The base fee is not paid to miners, as they might artificially choke the network in order to increase the fee. It is burned to solve this problem.
Continue reading: How to mine Ethereum: A 25-year old man who earns $42 per month for half an ether monthly in exchange for $42 each month explains how it works. An expert also discusses the impact of the recent blockchain upgrade on miners
The fee burn mechanism restricts the increase in ether's circulation. According to Watch the Burn, Sunday morning US time saw 89,543 ether issued and 45,799 burned. This amounts to a net decrease of about 34%.
The changes have been well received by investors. On Sunday, the price of ether rose from $2,700 at the time EIP-1559 was launched to $3,160. The price of ether had risen by 65% in the past 30 days due to excitement about the changes.
Edward Moya (senior market analyst at Oanda), stated in a note that a massive upgrade for Ethereum should be very positive for the cryptocurrency’s long-term outlook. "The rate at which tokens are produced has been slowed, which will make them a bit scarcer."
However, ether is a volatile asset that will be subject to unpredictable price movements. It was worth more than $4,100 at one point before it lost more than half of its value in June.
The regulators have warned repeatedly that cryptocurrency investors are taking a huge risk and should be ready to lose everything.
