Ethereum has reinforced its position as the primary settlement layer for onchain dollars after processing more than $8 trillion in stablecoin transfers during the final quarter of 2025. The milestone highlights how stablecoins have become the dominant transactional use case in crypto, even as token prices fluctuated through the year. While ether ended 2025 lower on a year over year basis, activity on the network told a different story, with stablecoins increasingly used for payments, trading, and treasury movements. The scale of transfers underscores Ethereum’s role as infrastructure rather than a speculative venue, with dollar-pegged tokens functioning as the system’s core liquidity rail. As broader crypto markets regained momentum at the start of 2026, the contrast between muted price performance and record transactional volume emphasized where sustained demand on the network continues to originate.
Data shows that Ethereum hosted the majority of global stablecoin supply throughout 2025, accounting for more than half of all issued dollar-pegged tokens. This dominance has been driven largely by the concentration of established issuers such as Tether and Circle, whose tokens underpin trading and settlement across centralized and decentralized venues. At the same time, newer stablecoins have also gravitated toward Ethereum, drawn by its deep liquidity and mature tooling. Research indicates that stablecoin balances on the network more than doubled compared with early 2024 levels, reflecting not only higher transaction counts but also larger idle balances parked onchain. Competing blockchains have captured incremental share through lower fees and faster execution, yet the largest flows and most critical financial activity continue to clear through Ethereum’s base layer and its surrounding ecosystem.
The surge in stablecoin transfers carries broader implications for how Ethereum is valued within digital markets. Heavy usage of dollar-pegged tokens increases demand for block space and reinforces ether’s role as the network’s transactional fuel, even when price appreciation lags behind activity growth. Stablecoin flows also anchor decentralized finance, where lending, trading, and collateral management remain overwhelmingly denominated in onchain dollars. At the same time, sustained volume places pressure on the network to maintain efficiency and control costs, as congestion or rising fees could accelerate migration to alternative chains. For now, the record transfer figures suggest Ethereum’s settlement layer remains central to crypto’s financial plumbing, with stablecoins acting as the clearest signal of where real economic activity continues to concentrate.
