Ethereum experiences historic quarter: record number of users and transactions

Ethereum (ETH) has had an exceptionally busy period in the last quarter of 2025. The network was used more intensively than ever and saw both the number of transactions and the number of active addresses increase sharply. The increase indicates that Ethereum is rapidly becoming an important network for large-scale payments worldwide.

Record quarter for stablecoin traffic on Ethereum

In the fourth quarter, Ethereum processed more than $8 trillion in stablecoin transfers. This is evident from data from analysis platform Token Terminal. This is a new record and almost doubles compared to the second quarter, when the volume was just above 4 trillion dollars.

Stablecoins are crypto coins that are linked to, for example, the dollar and are widely used for payments and trade. The total amount of stablecoins on Ethereum grew by approximately 43 percent by 2025. At the end of the year, there were approximately $181 billion worth of stable crypto coins outstanding on the network.

Number of active Ethereum addresses breaks records

Not only did the money being moved increase, but the use of the network itself also reached new heights. According to data from Etherscan, the number of daily transactions peaked at 2.23 million at the end of December. That is an increase of 48 percent compared to the same period a year earlier.

The number of active users also increased sharply. Token Terminal reports that the number of monthly active addresses reached 10.4 million in December, an all-time high. In addition, on some days more than 1 million unique addresses were active as senders or receivers of transactions.

Ethereum dominates RWA on the blockchain

Ethereum also plays a major role in digitizing real assets, such as bonds and funds, on the blockchain. About 65 percent of the total value of these so-called real world assets (RWA) is on the Ethereum network, according to RWA.xyz. When layer-2 and other networks are also included, that share increases to more than 70 percent.

Among stablecoins, Ethereum has a market share of 57 percent. Tron’s network is in second place with 27 percent. The largest issuer is Tether, with $187 billion in USDT in circulation. More than half of them run on Ethereum.