Popular cloud service provider Hetzner has said that its product is not for crypto users—despite the fact it hosts roughly 10% of all EthereumEthereum nodes.
In a Reddit post earlier this week, the company said that running just one node is a “violation.” A node is a computer that, together with other nodes, powers a decentralized network, like Bitcoin or Ethereum.
Nodes are needed to run software that can verify blocks and transaction data and keep a network chugging along.
Ethereum is the second largest cryptocurrency by market cap and, as it runs on a decentralized blockchainblockchain, anyone can set up a node in order to contribute and take part in running the network.
Many such participants on the Ethereum network make use of cloud computing providers to host their nodes. According to data from Ethernodes.org, almost 62% of all nodes on the Ethereum network operate via a hosting service, such as Amazon. Of those hosted nodes, 14% currently use Hetzner, which means the German company currently hosts 10% of Ethereum nodes.
I know this is off topic, but if there are Hetzner customers who are using Ethereum, they should please read this: https://t.co/Lhlv3KAtUZ --Katie
The issue resurfaced this morning when W3bcloud co-founder Maggie Love lamented this fact in a tweet. Love suggested that Ethereum lacked proper decentralization because it relies so heavily on cloud services like Amazon, which itself accounts for 50% of all hosted Ethereum nodes. The tweet also name-checked Hetzner, and the company replied with a link to a Reddit post which it said customers who are using Ethereum “should please read.”
In the post, the company said its service should definitely not be used for things related to crypto, including Ethereum. “Using our products for any application related to mining, even remotely related, is not permitted,” it said.
wow @Hetzner_Online says that running any #ethereum miners or PoS validators on their cloud infrastructure is a violation of their terms of service. hetzner currently accounts for ~15% of hosted ethereum nodes (not necessarily beacon chain validating nodes) 😵 pic.twitter.com/9iD32PFejc
“This includes Ethereum. It includes proof of stakeproof of stake and proof of workproof of work and related applications. It includes trading. It is true for all of our products, except colocation.”
Hetzner added: “We are aware that there are many Ethereum users currently at Hetzner, and we have been internally discussing how we can best address this issue.”
Hetzner did not immediately respond to Decrypt’s request for a comment.
Daily Debrief Newsletter
Start every day with the top news stories right now, plus original features, a podcast, videos and more.
Equity analysts from investment firms Benchmark and Bernstein reiterated their buy ratings and lofty price targets for Strategy (MSTR), a day after the company said that it had recorded a loss of $5.9 billion on its Bitcoin holdings in its first quarter of 2025.
The analysts highlighted Strategy’s continued strategy to purchase more Bitcoin, which has become its core business after the company pivoted from software development about five years ago.
“While the number of companies that have soug...
Riot Platforms posted mixed earnings results for the first quarter as it took steps to mitigate the effects of mining industry headwinds on its business.
The Bitcoin miner clocked $161.39 million in revenue in the three-month period ending on March 31, up 13% from the previous quarter, the firm said Thursday in a statement. That's roughly 2% above Wall Street’s expectations of $160.72 million.
The company's total revenue was largely boosted by its Bitcoin mining income, which jumped 100% in th...
Fortnite maker Epic Games’ antitrust case against Apple benefited the crypto industry on Thursday, when the iPhone maker loosened restrictions on developers’ ability to offer apps in the U.S. that direct users to non-standard purchasing methods or digital collectibles.
Apple updated its iOS App Store review guidelines after a U.S. District Judge found this week that the tech titan “willfully” violated a court injunction issued in 2021. Moving forward, the federal court prohibited Apple from coll...