Ethereum Dominates 2025: DeFi TVL Surpasses $99 Billion, Stablecoin Volume Reaches $18.8 Trillion

Ethereum’s DeFi TVL exceeded $99 billion, over nine times larger than the next Layer 1, demonstrating dominant network adoption in the decentralized finance world.

Ethereum reported strong growth in the decentralized finance (DeFi) and stablecoin space in 2025.

This was mainly because lower transaction costs and the expansion of the infrastructure contributed to greater use within the network.

DeFi and Stablecoin activity is increasing

In a New Year’s post shared via X, the chain revealed that it will have registered more than $99 billion in total value by 2025, according to data from DefiLlama. This figure places Ethereum’s DeFi TVL at more than 9 times that of the next largest Layer 1 ecosystem. Stablecoin usage also remained high throughout the year, with $18.8 trillion settled on the network.

These numbers coincided with a decline in transaction costs across the ecosystem. Ethereum Layer 1 fees fell to their lowest level in five years, while Layer 2 networks recorded transaction fees of less than $0.01, reducing costs for payments, transfers and savings-related activities. At the same time, the extensive payment master infrastructure allowed applications to cover user fees, often eliminating the need to hold ETH for gas.

Crypto platforms also expanded their use of Ethereum in 2025. Robinhood, Gemini and Kraken all launched tokenized stocks on-chain using Layer 1 and Layer 2 networks, providing expanded access to US stocks outside of standard market hours. Robinhood also announced plans to build its own Layer 2 network using Arbitrum’s Orbit technology.

Meanwhile, regulatory clarity supported the launch of new crypto-focused neobanks, which introduced payment cards and rewards programs while reporting millions of dollars in daily spend.

Network upgrades and ecosystem expansion

Beyond DeFi and stablecoins, Ethereum’s ecosystem continued to expand across institutional and technical fronts. Institutional participation increased with the expansion of ETH digital asset treasuries, with more than $35 billion of ETH held in exchange-traded funds and strategic reserves.

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Additionally, more institutions used Ethereum smart contracts to manage on-chain capital, access DeFi-based return strategies, and distribute more than $12 billion in real-world assets.

The network’s roll-up roadmap also made progress during the year. Combined throughput across Layer 2 networks reached an average of 5,600 transactions per second, while the Fusaka upgrade, deployed in December, increased blob capacity and reduced Layer 2 costs. The Tier 1 gas limit was also increased to 60 million, expanding settlement capacity by approximately 33%.

Ethereum celebrated its tenth anniversary in July 2025, which was marked by a record of more than 88 million smart contracts deployed, while daily transactions reached a new high of 1.74 million. Developer activity also remained high, with 32,000 active developers across the ecosystem and more than 16,000 new developers joining between January and September.