> The incentive for running these attacks for profit becomes higher as the market cap of these coins increases, making long-term 'investment' in these coins nonsensical.
I disagree that market cap is the primary indicator. Note that market cap (or really, price of ETC on major exchanges) has dropped dramatically in the past 3 to 6 months. So Market Cap / Price of ETC is a minor factor.
In contrast: the ABSOLUTE COST of a 51% attack drops each time the difficulty drops. That's what I personally think is the main contributor here, because the market-caps of all coins have dropped dramatically the past few months.
In effect: its not so much that the potential profit out of a hypothetical 51% has gone up (it hasn't: Ethereum Classic is way cheaper than it used to be). Its that the DIFFICULTY of ETC has dropped dramatically, finally making the 51% profitable.
I disagree that market cap is the primary indicator. Note that market cap (or really, price of ETC on major exchanges) has dropped dramatically in the past 3 to 6 months. So Market Cap / Price of ETC is a minor factor.
In contrast: the ABSOLUTE COST of a 51% attack drops each time the difficulty drops. That's what I personally think is the main contributor here, because the market-caps of all coins have dropped dramatically the past few months.
In effect: its not so much that the potential profit out of a hypothetical 51% has gone up (it hasn't: Ethereum Classic is way cheaper than it used to be). Its that the DIFFICULTY of ETC has dropped dramatically, finally making the 51% profitable.