Onchain activity significantly dropped across various major networks, as per Nansen data, with 11 blockchains reporting decreases in active addresses over the last year.
Ronin experienced the steepest decline at 70%, while Bitcoin saw a decrease of 7.2%. Several layer-2 Ethereum networks were also affected.
Additionally, Nansen data indicated reductions in transaction activity on many of the same networks, with ZKsync facing one of the most severe drops, recording a 90% decline in transactions.
Contrarily, Ethereum’s base layer registered a 25% increase in active addresses and more than a 20% rise in transactions, amidst ongoing discussions regarding Ethereum’s rollup-centric roadmap and concerns over liquidity fragmentation within layer-2 networks.
Networks with the biggest usage declines
Pixels, a well-known game, transitioned to Ronin from Polygon in the latter half of 2023. At the onset, Ronin had around 20,000 daily active users, and the arrival of Pixels led to a significant surge in activity, catapulting Ronin to the position of the second-most active chain by daily users.
By December 2024, Pixels boasted approximately 300,000 daily active users, according to DappRadar. However, the game’s popularity has since waned, resulting in a corresponding drop in Ronin’s onchain activity, showcasing the network’s dependence on popular games.
Multiple Ethereum layer-2 networks similarly faced a reduction in usage as activity linked to airdrops diminished. ZKsync’s token airdrop claim was launched in June 2024, claiming that nearly 700,000 wallets were eligible while facing scrutiny regarding its Sybil filtering. Nansen data illustrated that over 40% of the top airdrop wallets promptly sold their allocations. Scroll also appeared on the list after its October 2024 airdrop, after which onchain activity declined.
Arbitrum noted a 3% decrease in active addresses, yet with about 31 million users, it remained within the top 10 networks by activity. The Ethereum rollup completed its airdrop in 2023 and its transaction volume surged by 36% over the past year to roughly 734.5 million, outperforming Ethereum’s 507 million transactions. Arbitrum attracted activity from tokenized assets, including 500 US stocks issued on the network by Robinhood.
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Base and Optimism distinguished themselves among Ethereum layer-2 networks, both reporting increases in active addresses and transaction volumes. Base lacks a native token and has never performed an airdrop. Onchain activity rose alongside growing interest in sectors such as memecoins, AI-related applications, and decentralized exchanges.
Solana reported the highest number of active addresses in the industry, exceeding 1 billion, followed by Tron and Ethereum. BNB Chain experienced a 159% rise in active addresses, whereas Bitcoin was the only network in the top five to see a decline, along with a 22% drop in transactions.
What the declines do and do not show
The data revealed little consistent correlation between onchain usage and token prices. Solana’s price dipped over the past year, even with a 66% rise in active addresses, while BNB’s token price climbed alongside increased network activity.
The year-over-year declines do not inherently indicate fundamental issues for the networks involved. Onchain activity can vary dramatically as applications migrate, incentive programs conclude, or users transition between chains, especially among newer networks still defining their core use cases.
The Open Network (TON), which is linked to Telegram, also witnessed a 47% decrease in active addresses and a 51% fall in transactions, a reversal following exceptional growth in 2024. Mini-games based on Telegram significantly contributed to that earlier activity, attracting users beyond the typical crypto-native audience.
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Hamster Kombat stood out as one of the most notable cases. The tapping-based game simplified entry through its straightforward mechanics and drew substantial engagement from users anticipating a future token airdrop. According to Telegram CEO Pavel Durov, the viral game attracted 239 million users within three months, with over 130 million eligible for its airdrop in late September.
Nansen data indicates that TON’s active addresses peaked at about 2.5 million daily on Sept. 30. Since then, activity has receded as engagement linked to Hamster Kombat waned, emphasizing how fleeting surges can skew year-over-year comparisons.
A few chains retained usage after hype
The blockchain data from the past year illustrates that onchain activity migrates swiftly between networks instead of remaining fixed to any one chain. Declines were most pronounced on blockchains where activity concentrated around a limited number of applications, incentive programs, or viral events.
However, these declines do not automatically signal overarching failures within the ecosystem. In numerous cases, activity slowed down following phases of extraordinary growth, highlighting how year-over-year comparisons can be influenced by hype cycles, airdrops, or ephemeral applications.
Solana serves as a valuable comparison. Despite a boom driven by memecoins throughout 2024 and early 2025, activity remained elevated, with users, liquidity, and applications continuing to support the network post-boom.
Solana’s daily active addresses peaked above 9 million on Oct. 22, 2024, during the peak of memecoin trading. By December, daily users ranged from 2 million to 3 million. While this represented a notable decrease from peak figures, activity consistently surpassed levels seen prior to the boom.
Much of the decline in onchain activity over the past year stemmed from short-term profit motivations, but ecosystems like Solana, BNB Chain, and Base demonstrated capabilities to maintain usage beyond viral spikes, differentiating them from chains that experienced more significant downturns.
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