Ethereum is gaining traction among banks, asset managers and fintech companies. J.P. Morgan and BlackRock now offer tokenised liquidity products on the blockchain, while Robinhood has launched an Ethereum Layer 2 solution based on the Arbitrum stack.
For Pascal Hügli, Crypto Investment Manager at Zurich-based private bank Maerki Baumann, these projects are important signs of Ethereum's growing institutional acceptance. The network's economic metrics, however, paint a less convincing picture.
Revenues Have Fallen Sharply
One key measure is Ethereum's Real Economic Value, or REV. Put simply, it measures how much economic value the use of Ethereum generates for the protocol, validators and ultimately ETH holders.
REV has fallen sharply from the levels reached in 2023 and 2024. When interest in cryptocurrencies declines, trading, leverage and speculative activity tend to fall as well. This results in fewer transactions, less competition for blockspace and lower fee revenues.
