Ethereum is losing its dominance in stablecoin payment infrastructure as Layer 2 networks like Base capture an increasing share of settlement activity
Too little corroboration in the last 3 days to call a trend (2 articles). Watching for it to gain traction.
Base has pulled ahead of Ethereum mainnet in adjusted stablecoin volume, processing roughly $565 billion compared to Ethereum's $562 billion, and L2 networks collectively surpassed Ethereum in monthly stablecoin transaction count as far back as mid-2024. USDC growth on Base has been particularly rapid, suggesting that users and developers are routing payment activity away from mainnet toward cheaper, faster alternatives.
Stablecoin settlement volume is a proxy for real economic activity on a blockchain, and when that activity migrates to competing layers, it compresses fee revenue accruing to the base layer, weakening the fundamental case for ETH as a productive asset that captures value from its own ecosystem's growth.
"Base ranked first at about $565 billion in adjusted volume, just ahead of Ethereum at roughly $562 billion. When it rises to the top of an adjusted stablecoin flow table, it shifts attention from token supply to payment distribution: wallets, fees, app integrations, and settlement availability."
"L2 networks collectively surpassed Ethereum in monthly stablecoin transaction count in August 2024 and that Base saw rapid USDC growth after launching in 2023. June's volume data shows that the same pattern is beginning to appear in adjusted dollar flows."