The Ethereum blockchain has undergone intriguing transformations in 2023 in terms of user engagement patterns, according to a recent Nansen report. There has been a substantial increase in daily active Ethereum addresses, now exceeding 300,000.
Among these active addresses, DeFi entities have maintained their dominance, accounting for over twice as many users as NFT and layer 2 activities as of October 12th. This cements DeFi’s central role in on-chain activity.
The number of new users engaging with layer 2 solutions has increased notably, signaling a movement towards scalability as more individuals opt to begin their blockchain experience directly on layer 2 platforms. This aligns with the substantial growth in overall layer 2 and scaling user counts, propelled by improvements to layer 2 infrastructure as well as incentives like airdrops for getting started on these platforms.
Transaction data confirms these trends, with the ‘Layer 2, Bridging, and Infrastructure’ category seeing a 149% increase in incoming transactions year-to-date – the highest growth across sectors.
Contrastingly, after briefly exceeding DeFi in 2022, the NFT sector has seen a 50% plummet in daily users since early 2023. NFT activity has dropped 61.4% amid declining appeal to new wallet holders.
DeFi has proven more resilient, stabilizing at just below peak bull market levels. As layer 2 and DeFi cement their dominance, the report paints a picture of an Ethereum ecosystem pivoting away from NFT hype toward sustainable foundations for growth.
