Ethereum Reach A $1 Trillion Valuation This Year

The third quarter saw an explosion in DeFi activity that accelerated Ethereum's rise. Messari's data shows Ethereum's 30-day rolling average daily transaction volume reached $7 billion, compared to Bitcoin's $3 billion. Ethereum's volume is more than double Bitcoin's.

The 2018 calendar year offers useful perspective. That year Ethereum settled $500 million in transaction volume while Bitcoin processed $849 million. This year Bitcoin is tracking toward around $800 million in settled volume, which would make 2020 the network's second-best year on record, after 2018.

The comparison between the two networks isn't straightforward. Bitcoin's transaction volumes track movement of value in bitcoin form. Ethereum's transaction volumes, by contrast, capture the full scope of DeFi sector activity running atop Ethereum smart contracts. A significant portion of DeFi happens on the Ethereum blockchain.

Messari's analysts expect the next 12 months to be decisive for platform competition across the crypto industry. Ethereum's high fees represent a significant vulnerability. Competing blockchains build alternatives designed to undercut those fees and attract users. The success of various parallel DeFi ecosystems and which ones gain sufficient user adoption will determine which platforms dominate.