Arbitrum and Optimism Transactions Now Exceed Ethereum Mainnet

Optimism and Arbitrum are reaping the benefits of cheaper, faster transactions

article-image

Shizume/Shutterstock.com modified by Blockworks

share

Ethereum layer-2 rollups Arbitrum and Optimism have seen an uptick in their daily transactions over the past few months. Ethereum, meanwhile, is seeing a slight downtrend.

Arbitrum and Optimism are optimistic rollups designed to reduce the cost of transactions for the use of Ethereum dapps.

Both platforms have seen an uptick in daily active users recently, data compiled by Blockworks Research shows, with Optimism recently overtaking Arbitrum for daily active addresses and transactions per day.​​

Loading Tweet..

Martin Lee, data journalist at Nansen, told Blockworks that as time goes by, these ecosystems are becoming more developed — which may be one of the reasons as to why they are seeing a spike in active users and transactions.

​”DeFi protocols GMX for example is one of the key protocols driving Arbitrum’s active users and transactions,” Lee said. “Sushiswap’s activity on Arbitrum is seeing an increase as well due to the recent spike and revival of MAGIC,” a gaming-related token.

The number of transactions on Arbitrum has been steadily increasing since its Nitro upgrade in August, information on blockchain analytics platform Nansen shows. 

This upgrade, which was completed prior to the Ethereum Merge, increased Arbitrum’s throughput capacity by more than 7-to-10 times that of the Ethereum mainnet — hastening transaction speeds and reducing costs and requirements to run nodes.

These improvements may also be the reason why many new projects have decided to launch on Arbitrum. 

Some of the most recent projects that have been onboarded to the network include: Bebop DEX, which specializes in one-to-many and many-to-one token trading; automated money flow provider Cask Protocol; on chain-asset management platform Factor; and NFT platform OpenSea

In the case of Optimism, Lee says that, “we’re seeing a similar trend where DeFi protocols are one of the key drivers of adoption of the chain — Perpetual Protocol, Velodrome, Pika Protocol. Another key driver for both chains is Galxe, the on-chain identity and credentials project.” 

The ecosystems also have the two highest total value locked (TVL) across all layer-2 networks, with Arbitrum having a TVL of $2.34  billion, making up over 52% of the entire market share. Optimism has a TVL of $1.27  billion, totaling almost 30% of the entire market share, according to L2beat data.

Arbitrum does not yet have its own governance token, but Optimism’s OP token has posted double-digit gains since the start of 2023.


Get the news in your inbox. Explore Blockworks newsletters:

Tags

Decoding crypto and the markets. Daily, with Byron Gilliam.

Upcoming Events

Old Billingsgate

Mon - Wed, October 13 - 15, 2025

Blockworks’ Digital Asset Summit (DAS) will feature conversations between the builders, allocators, and legislators who will shape the trajectory of the digital asset ecosystem in the US and abroad.

Industry City | Brooklyn, NY

TUES - THURS, JUNE 24 - 26, 2025

Permissionless IV serves as the definitive gathering for crypto’s technical founders, developers, and builders to come together and create the future.If you’re ready to shape the future of crypto, Permissionless IV is where it happens.

Brooklyn, NY

SUN - MON, JUN. 22 - 23, 2025

Blockworks and Cracked Labs are teaming up for the third installment of the Permissionless Hackathon, happening June 22–23, 2025 in Brooklyn, NY. This is a 36-hour IRL builder sprint where developers, designers, and creatives ship real projects solving real problems across […]

recent research

Nillion_DeSci_Report_Template.png

Research

Nillion’s Monad Integration is poised to catalyze the next phase of DeSci’s evolution by eliminating key privacy bottlenecks. This synergy allows researchers, institutions, and DAOs to exchange sensitive data and insights securely while managing governance and payments onchain.

article-image

Celebrating the wisdom of a diamond-handed Bitcoin Legend

article-image

With the success of RWAs and stablecoins, DePINs could onboard the next wave of crypto users

article-image

Is crypto straying too far from things of value?

article-image

Firedancer and Solana ETFs look less significant than before

article-image

The newly passed House bill amplifies that strategic pivot for the Trump administration, from attempting austerity to running the economy hot

article-image

Unable to secure further funding, the game cycled through three different blockchains and at least five different game engines since 2018