$ETH decentralized application usage is showing strong signs of recovery in 2025. According to DappRadar analyst Sara Gherghelas, the number of unique wallets and transactions is expected to match—or potentially exceed—the levels seen in 2024, pointing toward a sustainable momentum in the ecosystem.
Looking at the data over the past decade, Ethereum has powered more than 234 million unique active wallets interacting with dApps and 452 million dApp-related transactions—mostly driven by DeFi, followed by NFTs and gaming, reinforcing ETH as the backbone of Web3 innovation.
What’s Driving the Surge?
DeFi, NFTs, and Layer-2 (L2) scaling solutions are the main engines behind renewed activity.
NFTs are expanding beyond art into utility use cases like gaming, identity, and real-world asset tokenization.
L2 platforms such as Arbitrum, Optimism, and zkSync are reducing fees and improving speed, making interaction with dApps more affordable.
Ethereum continues to dominate DeFi, hosting the majority of total value locked (TVL) and user volume. Despite competition from faster chains, $ETH ’s security, liquidity, and developer base keep it at the forefront. Future protocol upgrades and L2 adoption are expected to enhance scalability further.
Market Signals and Institutional Interest
ETH’s price has shown resilience. Futures open interest has recently hit a record $58 billion, and network activity has jumped 7.2% over the past 30 days. Still, some caution remains over borrowing costs for wrapped $ETH (wETH) and technical indicators hinting at possible overvaluation. ETH has traded in the range of $3,530–$3,933 over the last week, currently around $3,862, marking about a 5.8% increase.
On the institutional front, corporations are increasingly holding ETH in their treasury reserves. A total of 2.73 million ETH, representing around 2.26% of the total supply, is now held across 65 strategic reserves. Leading the list are BitMine, SharpLink Gaming, and The Ether Machine, drawing comparisons to how MicroStrategy’s Bitcoin holdings shaped sentiment.
Final Thoughts
2025 is shaping up to be a pivotal year for Ethereum. With dApp engagement back to 2024 levels, growing L2 adoption, and rising institutional interest, 
ETH is reinforcing its position as Web3's infrastructure leader. While macro uncertainties and increasing competition remain challenges, the current trajectory suggests Ethereum remains central to future decentralized growth.
