Ethereum’s DeFi Dominance Dips Below 68% as Rivals Gain
Ethereum DeFi dominance slipped to 67.65% in November, its lowest level since 2021. Competitors like Solana and Binance Smart Chain (BSC) are narrowing the gap. DeFiLlama data shows Solana commands 8.9% of DeFi activity, BSC holds 6.67%, and Bitcoin 6.75%. Ethereum retains a market cap of $420.7 billion and a 24-hour volume of $31.6 billion, but daily usage and developer activity are plateauing. Tron’s share in stablecoin issuance rose to 25.78%, versus Ethereum’s 55.55%. Emerging chains Base and Arbitrum each exceed 1%. Santiment reports Solana leads in daily active addresses and transaction volume. Its development score is 21.5, compared with Ethereum’s 14.3. These shifts point to an ongoing erosion of Ethereum DeFi dominance. Traders may diversify into alternative smart contract platforms.
Bearish
Ethereum’s declining DeFi dominance signals shifting capital and developer focus toward faster and cheaper smart contract networks. Similar to the 2020 surge of Binance Smart Chain, proof-of-stake chains like Solana and Tron are attracting users with lower fees and higher throughput. The drop below 68% in total DeFi activity may pressure ETH token demand and fees in the short term, as traders diversify into rival platforms.
Historically, such market share erosion led to periodic sell-offs in Ethereum before network upgrades restored confidence. In the long run, Ethereum’s roadmap and Layer-2 solutions could reclaim part of the lost share, but traders are likely to monitor throughput metrics and developer activity closely, sustaining a cautious stance on ETH until tangible scaling improvements materialize.