The structure of revenue generation across the Web3 ecosystem is changing. Recent data shows that user-facing decentralized applications are now capturing a significantly larger share of industry fees than the underlying blockchain networks, pointing to a potential shift in where long-term value is being created.
According to recent market data decentralized finance applications now generate nearly five times more fees than base-layer blockchains. This marks a clear change from mid-2024, when revenues between networks and applications were closer to parity. The growing dominance of wallets, decentralized exchanges, and other DeFi protocols highlights how value is moving closer to the end user.
Coutts in a Thursday X post;
Front-end platforms that control user experience are increasingly positioned to monetize activity more effectively than infrastructure layers.
Fee rankings over the past 30 days show that the top 17 revenue-generating entities in crypto are applications or protocols, not blockchains. Among networks, Solana stood out with over $20 million in fees, while Ethereum ranked lower with just above $10 million. In contrast, major protocols such as stablecoin issuers generated hundreds of millions of dollars during the same period.
This imbalance suggests that economic power in Web3 is consolidating at the application level.
High user engagement continues to support this trend. Solana led all networks with more than 68 million active addresses in 30 days, while Ethereum recorded 13 million active users, showing strong growth but lower relative scale.As Web3 matures, investors and developers may increasingly prioritize DeFi apps and wallets, where revenue capture and user relationships are becoming more concentrated.
Disclaimer
This content is for informational purposes only and does not constitute financial, investment, or legal advice. Cryptocurrency trading involves risk and may result in financial loss.