A new research report from analytics firm Artemis presents a compelling case for why Ethereum (ETH) may be entering a new era—emerging not just as a smart contract platform, but as a programmable, yield-generating reserve asset. Drawing parallels to how Bitcoin evolved in the mid-2010s from a niche experiment to a macro asset, the report explores how ETH could now be following a similar trajectory—on fundamentally different terms.

ETH: More Than Just Protocol Fees

Lead author Kevin Li challenges the conventional lens of evaluating ETH solely through cash flows or network fees. According to him, that’s a category error. Instead, ETH should be understood as a scarce, productive, and programmable asset—one that powers, secures, and settles a growing on-chain economy that’s rapidly being adopted by institutions.

One of the report’s key revelations is the modeling of Ethereum’s worst-case inflation scenario. Even if all ETH were staked and issuance reached its ceiling, annual inflation would top out at just 1.52% in 2025, falling to 0.89% by 2125. That’s significantly lower than the U.S. dollar’s historical average M2 growth rate (6.36%) and even beneath gold’s long-term supply growth. Coupled with EIP-1559’s burn mechanism, Ethereum often sees near-zero or deflationary supply dynamics—offering scarcity akin to gold, but with the added power of programmability.

Macro Forces and Institutional Momentum

Li argues that in a world of aggressive monetary expansion and dwindling trust in fiat, Ethereum’s adaptive monetary policy presents a credible alternative. Unlike traditional currencies, ETH maintains a delicate balance between network incentives and supply discipline—allowing it to reward validators while remaining a store of value.

Institutions are starting to take notice. In just the past year, JPMorgan, BlackRock, and Robinhood have all integrated Ethereum-based infrastructure—either the mainnet or its rollups—for use cases such as tokenized deposits, equity trading, and money market funds. The report points to BlackRock’s BUIDL fund and JPMorgan’s upcoming JPMD token as strong evidence that Ethereum is no longer experimental—it’s becoming the rails for real financial products.

And this is reflected on-chain. Artemis highlights that over $123 billion worth of stablecoins and real-world assets (RWAs) now live on Ethereum, while the amount of ETH staked has surged past 35.5 million ETH. Most impressively, the correlation between staked ETH and the value of on-chain assets sits above 88% across all major categories, reinforcing the link between demand for Ethereum’s security and its native token.

Regulation: The Missing Piece Falling Into Place

In a major boost to Ethereum’s staking narrative, the U.S. SEC issued guidance in May 2024 clarifying that protocol-level and delegated staking does not automatically classify as a securities offering. This opened the door for spot ETH ETF applications to include staking features, with several issuers already amending their S-1 filings to reflect this. If approved, ETH holders could soon get passive ETF exposure plus staking yields, all within regulated investment products.

ETH as Corporate Treasury Strategy?

Much like MicroStrategy’s historic pivot to Bitcoin in 2020, a new “treasury wave” appears to be forming—this time, with Ethereum. Sharplink Gaming announced in May that it would begin allocating company funds to ETH, followed by a group of smaller firms in the U.S. and Asia. Together, public companies now hold over 730,000 ETH, valued at more than $2.6 billion.

This accumulation trend has also coincided with a period of ETH outperforming BTC—a rarity in the current cycle, which has otherwise favored Bitcoin due to halving events and U.S. reserve narratives.

Addressing the Layer 2 Debate

Some critics argue that Layer 2 solutions cannibalize Ethereum’s fee revenue. Li disagrees. He likens Ethereum’s role to that of a central bank, where rollups function like regional banks handling transaction volume, but ultimate settlement and security reside on the base layer. This architecture expands Ethereum’s addressable market, without compromising validator incentives or economic security.

While high-speed Layer 1s like Solana dominate in transaction volume—especially in speculative areas like memecoins—Ethereum’s focus on institution-grade settlement offers far more long-term value, particularly as the financial sector moves on-chain.

Ethereum vs. Bitcoin: A Shift in Narrative

In the past, skeptics questioned whether Bitcoin could ever rival gold as a store of value. Today, similar doubts are cast on Ethereum. But the dynamics are shifting. Li points out that where Bitcoin had to justify its lack of utility, Ethereum now has to justify its abundance of utility—yield-bearing, programmable, and scarce.

As Ethereum completes its multi-year transition to proof-of-stake, and with regulatory clarity slowly emerging, the conversation around ETH is evolving. No longer just “gas” for smart contracts, ETH may now be the base money of the on-chain economy.

Conclusion

The Artemis report marks a turning point in how Ethereum may be understood in the years to come. ETH is no longer just a tech asset—it’s being positioned as a macro asset, a programmable and yield-generating reserve currency for the decentralized age.

If the current trajectory holds, the real question might not be whether Ethereum can catch up to Bitcoin, but whether institutions will start treating ETH as the monetary foundation of the next financial era.