Why Meme Coin Pushed Ethereum Network Fees to Highest in 2 Years
IntoTheBlock analysts note that increased network activity is benefiting ETH investors.
Ethereum network revenue rose to its highest level in nearly two years this week as a speculative fever over meme coins fueled blockchain activity.
IntoTheBlock data shows Ethereum's network fee revenue hit $193 million this week, the highest figure since May 2022 and up 78% from last week.
IntoTheBlock analysts say on-chain activity is largely driven by growing speculation in meme tokens.
If you don't have an account to buy meme coins:
Ethereum-based meme tokens like pepe (PEPE) , shiba inu (SHIB) and floki (FLOKI) have more than doubled in price over the past week.
Meanwhile, trading volume on decentralized exchanges (DEXs) built on top of Ethereum rose 40% to $20 billion this week, DefiLlama data shows.
According to Ultrasound.money data, over the past week, the supply of ETH has decreased by approximately 33,400 ETH (worth approximately $130 million at current prices) and deflated at an annual rate of 1.45%.
On the other hand, increased activity has made blockchain very expensive for users. IntoTheBlock notes that the average transaction cost (gas fee) on Ethereum increased to $28 this week, leaving many users “unable to use it.”
