Ethereum (ETH) Price Slumps 30% While Network Usage Soars to All-Time Highs

Key Takeaways

• Daily active Ethereum addresses approached 2 million in February 2026, exceeding previous bull run records from 2021
• Despite unprecedented usage, ETH has declined approximately 30% in the last half-year
• Transaction fee rankings place Ethereum third over 30 days, trailing both Tron and Solana
• Layer-2 solutions such as Base generate higher protocol revenue than Ethereum’s primary layer
• March 10 saw Ethereum spot ETFs record $12.59 million in net inflows, with no outflows registered

The Ethereum network is experiencing unprecedented levels of engagement. However, this surge in activity hasn’t translated into price appreciation for ether (ETH).

According to a March 10 analysis from CryptoQuant, Ethereum’s daily active addresses climbed to approximately 2 million during February 2026. This milestone exceeded the highs witnessed during the 2021 cryptocurrency bull cycle.

Daily smart contract interactions surpassed 40 million executions. Token transfer volumes similarly reached unprecedented levels. This engagement encompasses decentralized finance applications, stablecoin transactions, and automated protocol operations.

Despite this uptick in network utilization, ETH’s market value has decreased by roughly 30% across the previous six months. This represents a departure from historical trends where increased blockchain activity typically correlated with price appreciation.

According to CryptoQuant’s analysis, capital movement patterns now serve as better price indicators than usage metrics. Exchange flow analytics reveal ether deposits to trading platforms occurring at accelerated rates compared to bitcoin, suggesting heightened selling pressure.

Ethereum’s realized capitalization has shifted into negative territory on a one-year basis. This metric indicates net capital withdrawal from the ecosystem rather than accumulation.

Fee Revenue Competition Intensifies

Ethereum’s position in fee generation has weakened relative to competitors. DefiLlama statistics indicate Ethereum produced approximately $10.3 million in transaction fees during the most recent 30-day window. Tron captured the top position with nearly $25 million, while Solana secured second place at roughly $20 million.

Protocol revenue rankings place Ethereum in fifth position at merely $1.22 million. Notably, Base—a layer-2 scaling solution developed by Coinbase on Ethereum infrastructure—generated approximately triple the protocol revenue of Ethereum’s foundational layer during this timeframe.

Layer-2 platforms execute transactions off the main chain and remit nominal settlement fees to Ethereum. This architecture distributes economic value throughout the broader ecosystem instead of consolidating it on the base protocol.

Ethereum maintains dominance in stablecoin infrastructure, hosting approximately $162 billion in supply—representing roughly 52% of the worldwide market. Nevertheless, this commanding position hasn’t driven corresponding value accrual for ETH tokens.

Price Projections and ETF Trends

Forecasting platform CoinCodex projects ETH could surpass the $3,000 threshold by May 2026. Their machine learning algorithm anticipates prices maintaining levels above $2,000 throughout most of the year, with potential peaks approaching $3,673.

Achieving that upper target from present valuations would constitute approximately a 90% increase. The model estimates December 2026 pricing near $2,477, representing a projected 28% gain.

March 10 trading saw Ethereum spot ETF products register combined net inflows totaling $12.59 million. None of the nine available ETFs experienced net outflows during this session.

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Source: https://blockonomi.com/ethereum-eth-price-slumps-30-while-network-usage-soars-to-all-time-highs/