Ethereum is experiencing a significant increase in the use of “blobs,” a data management feature introduced earlier this year as part of its Dencun upgrade. This surge in blob activity signals growing adoption of layer-2 scaling solutions, which offer faster and more cost-effective transactions.
In August, the number of blobs, or binary large objects, posted to Ethereum consistently surpassed 21,000, matching the record activity levels seen in March. According to data from the pseudonymous analyst Hildobby’s Dune Analytics dashboard, this trend reflects heightened engagement with Ethereum’s scaling solutions.
Blobs are large chunks of data attached to regular transactions, storing information off-chain to avoid congesting the main Ethereum network. Unlike call data, which is permanently stored on-chain, blobs allow for more efficient data handling. To visualize, think of blobs as a large box filled with letters, where users pay for the entire box rather than paying individually for each letter, as with call data.
The rising blob count highlights the growing adoption of layer-2 protocols like Arbitrum, Optimism, and BASE. These protocols leverage blobs to bundle transactions, process them off-chain, and then post them to Ethereum’s main chain for validation.
“Transactions for ETH and its L2s are continuing to reach all-time highs, now +40% vs. the Summer. Meanwhile, the average blob count has increased by around 20%, driving layer-2 blob fees to a 30-day high,” said Matthew Siegel, head of digital assets research at VanEck.
Ethereum’s blobspace, a dedicated area within blocks where layer-2 protocols temporarily store their data, comes with a cost that varies depending on network conditions. These blob fees, paid in Ethereum’s native token ether, are burned, reducing the cryptocurrency’s circulating supply and challenging the idea that layer-2 solutions harm the main chain.
The base submission fee for blobs peaked at $80 on Monday, the highest since March, and the average number of blobs per block increased to 4.3. In the past week alone, blob fees have burned over 166 ETH, worth approximately $560,000, according to ultrasound.money. This marked a significant shift, as the blob fee market had largely remained stagnant until now.
As on-chain activity grows, demand for blobspace on the Ethereum mainnet has increased, pushing blob fees higher and signaling the beginning of price discovery for this market. According to Artemis, this surge in demand suggests a potential outperformance of ether in the near future.
Ether, the second-largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization, reached a four-month high of $3,546 on Monday, outperforming Bitcoin, which experienced a 5% drop. Although it has since pulled back to $3,370, this movement underscores the growing interest and potential for Ethereum’s continued success as layer-2 adoption expands.
