Base Maintains Strong Lead Among Ethereum Layer 2s

Base emerged as the top Ethereum layer 2 network during the Q4 2024 rally especially in terms of volumes.

Fast forward months later to the present and it is still holding down the top position even after the bumpy market conditions.

The Ethereum ecosystem has maintained healthy activity even though it is abundantly clear that the tariff wars have negatively impacted the crypto market.

Most of that activity has been taking place in the layer 2s and Base continues to reign as the top Ethereum layer 2 network in key areas.

A recent Dune analytics deep dive of the Base network revealed that it generated the highest fee revenue among the layer 2 cohort.

Its fees during the weekend surged to $570 million. It also took the lead in DEX activity with a 60% dominance.

Base Volume and TVL Recap

Base still secured the top Ethereum layer 2 ranking by volume according to Coingecko.

Its volume in the last 24 hours clocked $755.48 million which was $108.25 million more than Arbitrum, the runner-up.

Base also took poll position in terms of TVL which clocked in at $2.71 billion, gapping Arbitrum One by over $600 million.

It is however worth noting that the TVL has been declining since December in dollar value.

However, as far as token count is concerned, it has actually been enjoying a parabolic rally that peaked at 1.9 million ETH.

Looking at Base DEX volumes, there was a noteworthy cooling down observed since January, and it bottomed out at around 22 March.

It has since then bounced back strong, signaling that market activity has been making a comeback in the last 2 weeks.

The DEX volumes notably bounced back close to levels that the cryptocurrency achieved when the market experienced robust activity in November and December.

Network Liquidity and Transaction Count Underscore Healthy Utility

While volumes and TVL confirmed the level activity, transaction account and liquidity reveal the level of utility that Base network has been operating at.

Healthy liquidity growth is often considered a good sign of how well value can flow within a blockchain ecosystem.

Base stablecoin marketcap grew aggressively between March and May 2024. It has since adopted a slower pace of growth but has still maintained a positive trajectory over the last 12 months.

Base network’s stablecoin marketcap soared as high as $4.25 billion as of 6 April. For reference, the network’s stablecoin count was $1.79 billion exactly 12 months prior.

As far as transactions were concerned, the bearish market conditions in Q1 2025 did have a noteworthy impact. Daily transaction count surged above 13 million at its peak in early January.

Transactions have since then been slashed by almost half. The Base network has so far averaged over 7 million transactions since the start of April.

Daily transactions hovered around 7.6 million transactions as of 10 December. Transactions have cooled down substantially, by almost half compared to the latest local top.

Nevertheless, they have maintained well above levels last seen before November 2024.

What Pushes Base to the Top Among Ethereum Layer 2s

These observations underscore the reasons why Base has so far managed to remain at the top of the list of top layer 2.

This lead could further be solidified by the aggressive adoption that the network has been experiencing.

Numerous crypto protocols operate on the Base network, and the number continues to grow as more protocols embrace the layer 2.

Its attractiveness largely lies in lower fees and faster transactions and these characteristics could continue attracting more adoption.