The cryptocurrency created by Vitalik Buterin is Ethereum.
Buterin proposed Ethereum in a white paper published in late 2013. His idea extended blockchain technology beyond Bitcoin-style payments by creating a programmable platform for smart contracts and decentralized applications.
Ethereum was developed by a broader founding team, so saying Buterin created it does not mean he was its only founder or developer. The project conducted a public ether sale in 2014, and its Frontier mainnet officially launched on July 30, 2015.
Ethereum is the name of the network and platform, while ether, commonly identified by the ticker ETH, is its native cryptocurrency. That distinction is a frequent source of confusion: technically, users hold ether on Ethereum, although everyday speech often calls the coin “Ethereum.” Cardano, Litecoin, and Bitcoin were created by different people and teams.