Ethereum News Today: Tron's Fee Cuts Boost Adoption But Revenue Slumps 37% as Volatility Wanes

Blockchain network revenue declined 16% month-over-month in September 2025, driven by reduced cryptocurrency volatility and governance-driven fee adjustments, according to asset manager VanEck. The drop in volatility curtailed arbitrage opportunities and high-priority transaction demand, directly lowering fees across major networks. Ethereum's revenue fell 6%, Solana's dropped 11%, and Tron recorded the steepest decline at 37%, attributed to an August governance proposal that halved gas fees. Volatility metrics for key assets declined sharply: Ether (ETH) fell 40%, Solana (SOL) 16%, and Bitcoin (BTC) 26%. These trends underscore the sensitivity of blockchain revenue to market conditions and protocol-level changes.

Tron maintained its position as the leading revenue-generating blockchain ecosystem, producing $3.6 billion in annualized revenue as of September 2025, per Token Terminal data. This dominance stems from its role in stablecoin settlements, particularly Tether (USDT), which accounts for 51% of the circulating supply on Tron. The network's stablecoin activity, combined with low-cost transactions and high throughput, enabled it to outperform Ethereum, which generated $1 billion in annual revenue despite ETH reaching all-time highs in August. Tron's 24-hour revenue hit $1.28 million in September, significantly exceeding Ethereum's $504,000 and Solana's $34,000.

The stablecoin market's expansion reinforced Tron's revenue resilience. As of October 2025, the stablecoin market cap surpassed $292 billion, with Tron's USDT volume reaching $4–$5 billion daily. This growth aligns with global demand for efficient cross-border payments and DeFi liquidity. Meanwhile, Ethereum and Solana face challenges balancing scalability with fee economics. Ethereum's Pectra upgrade, scheduled for December 2025, aims to improve Layer-2 (L2) scalability through Peer Data Availability Sampling (PeerDAS), reducing data storage demands on validators. Solana's Alpenglow upgrade, finalized in September, enhanced block capacity but did not fully address MEV (Maximal Extractable Value) inefficiencies, where block builders capture 60% of fees compared to Ethereum's 5%.

Investor analysis of blockchain networks increasingly emphasizes fundamentals such as active addresses, transaction volume, and fee revenue. Tron's daily active addresses reached 2.41 million in September, with 8.46 million transactions processed, outpacing Ethereum and Solana. However, DeFi total value locked (TVL) on Tron declined 33% year-to-date to $5 billion, reflecting broader market volatility and competition from faster Layer-1s. To counter this, Tron launched USDD 2.0, a decentralized stablecoin governed by smart contracts, aiming to rebuild trust in its DeFi ecosystem.

VanEck highlighted the importance of monitoring volatility and fee policy changes for assessing blockchain health. While Tron's governance-driven fee cuts boosted adoption, they also compressed revenue. Ethereum's focus on L2 scalability and Solana's MEV optimization efforts illustrate divergent strategies to balance user experience with monetization. Investors are advised to track stablecoin flows, on-chain activity, and protocol upgrades to evaluate long-term viability.

[1] VanEck Says Lower Volatility May Explain September Network Revenue Drops as Tron Remains Top Earner (https://en.coinotag.com/vaneck-says-lower-volatility-may-explain-september-network-revenue-drops-as-tron-remains-top-earner/)

[2] Crypto Network Revenue Declined by 16% in September - VanEck (https://cointelegraph.com/news/blockchain-revenues-declined-16-september)

[3] VanEck Reports September 2025 Crypto Market Trends: Key ... (https://blockchain.news/news/vaneck-september-2025-crypto-market-trends)

[4] Tron Tops 2025 Blockchain Revenue: USDT Growth Fuels TRX Price and Adoption (https://www.24crypto.news/tron-tops-2025-blockchain-revenue-usdt-growth-fuels-trx-price-and-adoption-106320)

[5] TRON H1 2025: Consistent Growth Across Key ... (https://cryptorank.io/insights/research/tron-h-1-2025)

[6] TRON's Stellar H1 2025 Performance: Revenue Milestones ... - OKX (https://www.okx.com/learn/tron-h1-2025-performance-revenue-stablecoin-ecosystem)

[7] Ethereum (ETH) News: VanEck on 'Significant' Implications of ... (https://www.coindesk.com/tech/2025/10/04/how-ethereum-s-fusaka-upgrade-could-be-a-game-changer-asset-manager-vaneck-explains)

[8] VanEck Crypto Monthly Recap for January 2025 | VanEck (https://www.vaneck.com/corp/en/news-and-insights/blogs/digital-assets/matthew-sigel-vaneck-crypto-monthly-recap-for-january-2025/)

[9] TRON Dropped Q2 Report: Revenue, USDT Dominance ... (https://www.newsbtc.com/news/tron-trx/tron-drops-q2-report-revenue-usdt-dominance-lead-multi-quarter-highs/)

[10] TRON recognized by CryptoRank, Messari, and Nansen: $916M ... (https://cryptobriefing.com/tron-network-performance-h1-2025-2/)