Dune Analytics data reveals that 8.5 million Ethereum addresses have traded on Uniswap via Layer-2 solutions like Arbitrum, Base, Optimism, Polygon, and ZKSync, marking a new all-time high. Uniswap, the largest decentralized exchange (DEX) on any blockchain, generated nearly $100 million in fees in June.
Ethereum, co-created by Vitalik Buterin, is renowned for secure and permissionless transactions, but on-chain congestion often leads to higher transaction costs. Layer-2 solutions (L2s) were designed to alleviate this congestion and provide a more cost-effective way to trade within the largest decentralized finance (DeFi) ecosystem.
TVL Declines Across DeFi Despite L2 Growth
While Ethereum L2 addresses have increased, total value locked (TVL) across DeFi platforms, including Ethereum and its L2s, has declined. Protocols like Base and Polygon already offered lower transaction fees than Ethereum, a benefit further enhanced by the March Dencun upgrade.
According to L2Fees, it costs less than $1 to send Ether on Layer-2 networks and under $3 to swap digital assets, a key factor driving the rise in L2 addresses since February, right before the Dencun upgrade. Despite this growth in L2 adoption, TVL has dropped by up to 25% in the last 30 days, reflecting broader market corrections and declines in the altcoin sector.
