Blockchain Financials
Network REV (Real Economic Value) is a standardized metric that tracks blockchain value accrual generated by user activity. REV consists of both in-protocol transaction fees and out-of-protocol tips that users pay for transaction execution. Therefore, it also measures the monetary demand to transact on a blockchain. In the case of Polygon zkEVM, there are no out-of-protocol tips so all REV is generated by in-protocol transaction fees.
From the perspective of the token holders, REV is the "top line" metric of a blockchain as it represents the amount of value paid into the system that token holders are ultimately eligible to earn, net of any operating expenses.
The operating expenses, or Operator Payments, consist of the value allocated to the infrastructure providers responsible for running the network, such as posting data back to the L1.
Therefore, Gross Onchain Profit is the remaining value eligible to be distributed to the token holders and is calculated as REV less any Operator Payments. In the case of Polygon zkEVM, all Gross Onchain Profit accrues to Polygon Labs.