🥛 Is Ethereum dead? Its revenue is plummeting... 📉

PLUS: Cost of living easing → Prices setting up to run 🏃                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                 August 14, 2024 | [Read Online]( 🥛 Is Ethereum dead? Its revenue is plummeting... 📉 PLUS: Cost of living easing → Prices setting up to run 🏃 [fb]( [fb]( [fb]( [fb](mailto:?subject=Post%20from%20Milk%20Road&body=%F0%9F%A5%9B%20Is%20Ethereum%20dead%3F%20Its%20revenue%20is%20plummeting...%20%F0%9F%93%89%20%3A%20PLUS%3A%20Cost%20of%20living%20easing%20%E2%86%92%20Prices%20setting%20up%20to%20run%20%F0%9F%8F%83%0A%0Ahttps%3A%2F%2Fthemilkroad.beehiiv.com%2Fp%2Fethereum-dead-revenue-plummeting) Today's edition is brought to you by [Blockscout]( - the block explorer that’s smoother than your morning milk. Browse dApps and data across 600+ EVM chains, and start your day right. [Explore like never before with Blockscout.]( [breaker] GM. This is Milk Road – we sift through crypto news to find you the hidden gems, like your aunt at the Macy’s bargain bin! Here’s what we got for you today: - ✍️ No, Ethereum isn’t dead. Here’s why - ✍️ Cost of living easing → Prices setting up to run - 🎙️ The Milk Road Show: [WTF is Going On with Ethereum? w/ Kyle Reidhead]( - 🍪 MetaMask launches debit card in partnership with Mastercard [Prices as of 9:30AM ET. Click here for our Fear & Greed Index]( [breaker] NO, ETHEREUM ISN’T DEAD. HERE’S WHY 👇 First, let’s rip the bandaid off: Ethereum revenue is plummeting, fees were down $679m in Q2 (57%), and sentiment is falling alongside price. [Source: Growthepie]( …but is this really as bad as it looks? Short answer: no. Long answer… Back on March 13th, Ethereum Improvement Proposal (EIP) 4844 was implemented, increasing the scalability of L2s, while lowering fees for users. Which was kinda like a mom n’ pop corner store transforming into a Walmart overnight… (All of a sudden, mom n’ pop can handle way more customers, and buy in wholesale quantities – large enough to massively lower their prices). Capacity expansion and lowered cost is obviously a positive thing for the Ethereum ecosystem, long term - but it comes with some teething issues… The good: By increasing the supply of Ethereum’s main product (blockspace – aka: transaction capacity), L2’s can now offer near-zero transaction fees to their users, and increase their margins…by like, A LOT. 💰 (It’s pretty much a big flashing billboard, saying “COME BUILD ON ETHEREUM!”) [Source: Growthepie]( The bad: The rent paid by L2s to settle on Ethereum has dropped drastically – and in order for this fee revenue to recover, the Ethereum ecosystem needs to significantly grow its user base. …which is exactly what’s happening. L2 transactions were up 63% in Q2, while active users pumped 81% 👇 [Source: Growthepie]( 🥛 Milk Road Take: Like the internet before it, Ethereum is having its broadband moment, the expanded capacity is laid (aka: cheap blockspace supply) – now the demand just needs to catch up with supply, and drive Ethereum’s revenue back up. It took years for the internet’s broadband capabilities to be fully leveraged – Youtube couldn't have existed when the internet was on dial up. But once capacity opened up, the possibilities were endless. 🚀 Ethereum is having a similar moment - sure, its revenue is down, but so long as the Ethereum ecosystem as a whole continues to grow, [$ETH]( is far from dead - hell, the ecosystem is alive, kicking, and brimming with opportunities! …you just need to know where to look. 👀 So, in today’s episode of The Milk Road Show, our lead researcher for [Milk Road PRO](, [Kyle Reidhead](, takes a deep dive into the numbers—why they are the way they are and what it all means for your crypto bags. Tune in! 🎧️ [YouTube]( | [Spotify]( | [Apple Podcasts]( [NOT YOUR AVERAGE BLOCK EXPLORER]( [Meet Blockscout](, the most versatile and smoothest block explorer across 600+ EVM chains, including [Ethereum](, Optimism, Base, Arbitrum, all the Roll-Ups, and many more. Can your block explorer do this? - Data Deep Dives: Make informed decisions with stats covering chain performance, accounts, transactions, blocks, tokens, gas, and smart contracts. - Dappscout Marketplace: Discover and [explore dApps]( safely with security ratings and reviews from verified users. - Daily DeFi Routines: Bookmark favorite dApps, and tap shortcuts to swap, disperse, send payment links, and get gas with minimal clicks. The Swiss Army knife no crypto scout can live without. [Explore Blockscout now!]( [breaker] COST OF LIVING EASING → PRICES SETTING UP TO RUN 🏃 Over the past two days we’ve received a fresh new delivery of PPI & CPI data (and both are trending down 💪). - PPI = How much the cost of manufacturing has gone up/down. - CPI = How much retail prices have gone up/down. Why this matters: If the data is trending down, there’s a higher likelihood that the Fed will start cutting rates. ✂️ (Making loan/credit repayments cheaper → giving us all more milk money to spend → ideally boosting the economy and asset prices, over time). But if this data trends up, the opposite will happen (rates/cost of living up → vibes/prices down). Good news: Both PPI & CPI inflation rates aren’t just trending down, they’re falling faster than expected. - July PPI inflation fell to 2.2%, below expectations of 2.3% - July CPI inflation fell to 2.9%, below expectations of 3.0% Translation: The likelihood of rate cuts just went up in the near-term! 🔥 (And Polymarket agrees👇) [Source: Polymarket]( Now, here’s what to watch out for: If inflation falls too fast / too consistently, that could be an early sign that we’re heading into a recession. Think of it like landing a plane: you want to descend slowly over time, instead of nose diving into the tarmac. ([Btw, we laid out some more thoughts on this in yesterday’s podcast]() But for now – while market turbulence is still present, inflation’s descent is remaining steady. 🛩️ [breaker] BITE-SIZED COOKIES FOR THE ROAD 🍪 [Goldman Sachs has invested $418M in U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs, spreading its investment across seven different funds.]( This includes major positions in BlackRock's iShares Bitcoin Trust and Fidelity's FBTC, highlighting the bank's strategic entry into the crypto market​. [Bitcoin miners have resumed expanding their operations, pushing the network hashrate to a new all-time high despite recent price drops.]( This increase in activity follows a significant miner capitulation event, suggesting that the worst of the selling pressure may be over​. [Renzo is expanding into Solana's liquid restaking space by partnering with the Jito Foundation.]( They will launch $ezSOL, a new liquid restaking token, next month, utilizing Jito's validator network. This move positions Renzo as a key player in Solana's DeFi ecosystem. [MetaMask has begun rolling out its blockchain-based debit card, developed in collaboration with Mastercard and Baanx.]( Initially available to a limited number of users in the EU and UK, the card allows direct purchases with cryptocurrencies like USDC, USDT, and wETH held in MetaMask's self-custodial wallet. [breaker] MILKY MEMES 🤣 [Source: @naiivememe]( [Source: @AltcoinGordon]( [Source: @alancarroII]( [breaker] RATE TODAY’S EDITION What'd you think of today's edition? [🥛🥛🥛🥛🥛 F**king great]( [🥛🥛🥛 Meh, do better]( [🥛 You didn't bring the heat]( ROADIE REVIEW OF THE DAY 🥛 VITALIK PIC OF THE DAY [breaker] DISCLAIMER: None of this is financial advice. This newsletter is strictly educational and is not investment advice or a solicitation to buy or sell any assets or to make any financial decisions. Please be careful and do your own research. [tw]( [ig]( [yt]( [tk]( [in]( Interested in reaching smart readers like you?  [Sponsor Milk Road]( Update your email preferences or unsubscribe [here]( © 2024 ImpactDM Inc. operating as Milk Road 1257 Dundas St W Toronto, Ontario M6J1X6, Canada [Terms of Service](