Ethereum is seeing strong network growth, and a new Etherealize breakdown of Token Terminal’s Ethereum Q1 2026 performance report explains why. Even though lower fees might look negative at first, they’re actually part of Ethereum’s plan to make the network cheaper and easier to use.
That strategy seems to be working. Over the past year, monthly active users jumped 85.9%, transactions rose 81.5%, and network throughput increased 81.7%, showing much higher overall activity. And the growth isn’t slowing down.
The upcoming Glamsterdam upgrade is expected to more than triple the gas limit, while Ethereum’s long-term roadmap aims for 10,000 TPS and faster finality by 2029.
Ethereum Q1 2026 Performance Metrics
Ethereum’s user base remained one of the largest in crypto despite a broader market slowdown.
- Total Value Locked (TVL): $316.2 billion (-11% QoQ, +22.8% YoY)
- Active Loans: $21.8 billion (-16.6% QoQ, +39% YoY)
- Trading Volume: $134.5 billion (-24% QoQ)
- Ecosystem Fees: $2 billion (-16.9% QoQ)
- Tokenized Asset Market Cap: $203.4 billion (+42.9% YoY)
- Stablecoins: $178.9 billion
- Tokenized Funds: $19.4 billion (+73.1% YoY)
- Tokenized Commodities: $4.7 billion (+325.9% YoY)
Record User Growth on Ethereum
One of the biggest highlights was user activity.
Based on the report, monthly active users reached an all-time high of 13.2 million, up 53.5% from the previous quarter and nearly 86% compared to a year ago. Whereas, the transaction count hit a record 200.4 million, while network throughput climbed to 25.78 transactions per second.
At the same time, Ethereum layer-1 fees dropped to $39.9 million, down nearly 48% quarter-over-quarter. The decline came as network upgrades made transactions cheaper and increased data capacity.
In simple terms, more people are using Ethereum while paying less to transact.
Ethereum Continues to Lead Tokenization
Ethereum remains the dominant blockchain for tokenized assets.
The network currently holds:
- 61.8% of stablecoins
- 73% of tokenized funds
- 84% of tokenized commodities
- 79.2% of active DeFi loans
Stablecoins remain the largest category at $178.9 billion, led by USDT and USDC. Tokenized funds grew strongly thanks to products from firms such as BlackRock, while tokenized gold products drove a sharp rise in tokenized commodities.
What Stood Out Most?
The biggest takeaway from Q1 is that Ethereum’s activity keeps growing even as fees fall. User numbers, transactions, and tokenized assets all moved higher, while institutions continued launching products on the network.
On the top, big institutions keep on adding. Recent developments include new tokenized funds from BlackRock, a second tokenized money-market fund from JPMorgan Chase, and a tokenized liquidity fund launched by Fidelity International.
For Ethereum, the quarter was less about short-term prices and more about growing adoption, expanding tokenization, and strengthening its role as the backbone of on-chain finance.
