Short for Ethereum’s 20th “Request For Comment”, ERC-20 is a standard for implementing tokens on the Ethereum blockchain. The standard lays out a set of functions and events a smart contract must include in order for the token to “play nice” with wallets and other smart contracts like DEXs and lending protocols which wish to interact with it.
Officially recognized in September 2017, the rise of ERC-20 tokens was a key driver of ICO mania which took place during the 2018 Ethereum bull market. Most tokens you see today, whether they’re stable coins, meme coins, governance tokens, etc. all follow the ERC-20 token standard.
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