Ethereum’s network has generated more fees than bitcoin for a record-setting two straight months.
According to a tweet by crypto research firm Messari, ethereum has accounted for more fees than bitcoin over the past two months, setting the longest streak in the crypto-asset’s history.
Ethereum fees skyrocketed during August in conjunction with an increase in popularity for decentralized finance (DeFi) protocols, most notably yield-farming. The surge in DeFi smart contracts, which often require the completion of multiple transactions, led to congestion on ethereum’s network.
Users were forced to pay exuberant transaction fees in order to send ether, with the average fee reaching an all-time high of $12 on September 17. While fees have since fallen 85 percent to a current level of $2, many ethereum clients fear a renewed interest in DeFi will lead to a relapse in network congestion.
Ethereum developers have responded to the high fees by collaborating on a new Ethereum Improvement Proposal, dubbed EIP-1559, which seeks to reform the network’s fee market. Under the new proposal, ethereum will adopt a fixed rate network fee for each block.
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