Ethereum Weekly Fees Plunge 70% Amid Slowing DeFi Activity

Ethereum weekly fees fell by more than 70% over the past week, according to data from Sentora (formerly IntoTheBlock). With a massive decline, total Ethereum fees in the past week were only $2.12 million.

According to Sentora, the drop is a sign of a decline in high-velocity decentralized finance (DeFi) activity on the smart contract network. This is not particularly surprising amid the broader bearish trend in the crypto sector.

Interestingly, some argue that the drop in total fees is likely due to lower gas fees rather than a direct drop in transaction activity. However, Sentora noted that this week also saw a corresponding drop in volume and transaction activity.

Nevertheless, a broader timeframe shows the drop in fees might be influenced by efficiency, as the gas price on Ethereum declined. According to Defillama data, decentralized exchange (DEX) volume on Ethereum has increased since late December but remains below the peak levels in the second half of 2025.

Daily active addresses have also increased, with an average now over 500,000 addresses and a peak of 1 million on January 16. Similarly, daily transaction volume is now regularly exceeding 1.5 million, compared with 2025, when it was usually below that level.

BitMine Bullish on Ethereum

These underlying positive metrics are likely driving the bullish position that the Ethereum treasury company BitMine continues to maintain. Despite sitting on over $6 billion in unrealized losses, the firm believes that Ethereum is positioned to recover.

In a recent post, the company used the ETH onchain cost basis or its realized price to argue that a bottom is near for the asset.  It noted that the cost basis is $2,241, while ETH currently trades at $1,934, indicating a loss of around 22% from the realized price.

Compared with previous ETH lows of 39% in 2022 and 21% in 2025, Bitmine believes the asset is already near its implied lows. It is now expected to recover in 6-12 months.

Bitmine wrote:

“Since 2017, using different deciles of ETH realized loss, we can see forward 6M and 12M returns for ETH: – current loss is 9th decile – implied 12M return is 81% – win-ratio is 87%. Is this the bottom? Seems like we are closing in on that low.”

Ether Sees $1.1 Billion in Exchange Netflow

However, improving network metrics and BitMine’s bullishness have not stopped investor flight from ETH. The asset saw an exchange net flow of $1.1 billion in the past seven days.

This implies that holders sent over 550,000 ETH to centralized exchanges last week. This is a sign that many are still selling, contributing to the 1.3% weekly decline in value as the asset remains depressed below $2,000.

Interestingly, there has been a slight recovery today, with ETH rising by 2%. However, the token remains firmly below $2,000, signaling a worrying trend.