The blockchain ecosystem continues to evolve rapidly, with significant developments across major networks and protocols. From Ethereum’s network upgrades to new mainnet launches and growing DeFi activity, here’s a roundup of the key events from the past week.
Ethereum Gas Limit Increased Under Proof-of-Stake
In a notable milestone, the Ethereum network has successfully increased its block gas limit for the first time under its Proof-of-Stake (PoS) consensus mechanism. The change, which received support from over 50% of validators, raises the gas limit from 30 million to 31 million, with expectations of eventually reaching 36 million.
This adjustment enhances the network’s transaction throughput without requiring a hard fork. The last Ethereum gas limit increase occurred in 2021, when it was raised from 15 million to 30 million. The upgrade reflects continued efforts to improve scalability and user experience.
Pectra Upgrade Test Schedule Confirmed
Ethereum developers have finalized the testing timeline for the upcoming Pectra upgrade, the network’s first major update in 11 months. Scheduled for release in April, the upgrade includes several improvements focused on wallet functionality and validator efficiency.
Key proposals include EIP-7702, which enhances user wallet experience by allowing gas fees to be paid in tokens other than ETH via account abstraction, and EIP-7251, which increases the maximum staking amount per validator from 32 ETH to 2,048 ETH. This change aims to streamline node operations and reduce setup time for new validators.
Testing begins on February 26 on the Holesky testnet, followed by the Sepolia testnet on March 5. If successful, the mainnet rollout is expected in early April.
Berachain Mainnet Goes Live
The Berachain Foundation officially launched its mainnet on February 6. Berachain is a new EVM-compatible Layer 1 blockchain that utilizes a Proof of Liquidity (PoL) mechanism to align network value with the applications built on top of it.
Binance announced its seventh HODLer airdrop featuring Berachain (BERA). Users who subscribed BNB to Simple Earn products between January 22 and January 26 (UTC) are eligible for the airdrop. BERA trading went live on Binance on February 6, with pairs including BTC, USDT, USDC, BNB, FDUSD, and TRY. The token carries a seed tag on the exchange.
According to DeFiLlama, Berachain’s Total Value Locked (TVL) has reached $1.8 billion, placing it as the eighth-largest network by TVL, ahead of Sui and Avalanche. Major protocols on the network include DEX Kodiak ($675 million), CDP platform Beraborrow ($402 million), and lending protocol Dolomite ($313 million).
Optimism Launches New Retro Funding Round
Optimism has initiated a new Retro Funding program, allocating 8 million OP tokens to reward developers. This round focuses on dev tooling, supporting builders who create compilers, libraries, debuggers, and other tools for the Superchain.
The application period runs from February 5 to July 31, with monthly distributions starting in March. All projects must be open-source to qualify.
Uniswap V4 Surpasses $60 Million in TVL
Since its launch nearly a week ago, Uniswap V4 has accumulated over $60 million in Total Value Locked (TVL). Data from Allium shows that approximately 67.4% of this TVL is on Ethereum. The protocol has facilitated over $237 million in cumulative trading volume, with 31.2% originating from Hooked Pools.
On February 5, Uniswap V4 recorded a daily trading volume of $22.11 million, with Ethereum accounting for $10.87 million, followed by Base at $4.88 million and Arbitrum at $3.32 million.
Ondo Finance Introduces Ondo Global Markets
Ondo Finance has launched Ondo Global Markets (Ondo GM), a platform designed to provide global investors with on-chain access to U.S. publicly traded securities. The service offers tokenized assets pegged 1:1 to underlying equities, bonds, and ETFs. These tokens provide stablecoin-like liquidity and can be freely transferred outside the United States.
Virtuals Protocol Captures $39.6 Million in Revenue
Since October 16, Virtuals Protocol has generated $39.6 million in revenue, according to its official dashboard. Daily revenue peaked at $1.58 million on January 2 but has declined steadily since.
Revenue is derived from two primary sources: a 1% transaction fee allocated to the treasury pre-graduation and a 1% fee directed to Agents Wallet post-graduation. No revenue has been generated on Solana thus far.
AI Agents tokens launched via Virtuals Protocol (excluding VIRTUAL) have exceeded $6.5 billion in DEX trading volume. On Base network, approximately 222,000 wallets hold at least $10 worth of any Virtuals-related Agent token.
AI Agents Sector Loses $14 Billion in Market Cap
Over the past three weeks, the AI Agents sector has lost approximately $14 billion in market capitalization. Total market cap peaked at $20.37 billion on January 15 before falling to around $6.2 billion.
Social engagement metrics, including Crypto Twitter mentions, shares, and replies related to AI Agents, have also declined by over 60% since peaking on January 17.
Solayer Reveals LAYER Tokenomics
Solayer has disclosed the token economics for its native LAYER token. With a maximum supply of 1 billion tokens, initial circulation will be 220 million. The distribution is allocated as follows: 51.23% for community and ecosystem, 17.11% for core contributors, 16.66% sold to investors, and 15% reserved for the Solayer Foundation to support product expansion and network development.
LAYER will be used for governance, protocol upgrades, ecosystem incentives, and future blockchain validation rewards.
Telegram Game Retention Rates Lag Behind Traditional Games
A report from Helika indicates that user retention rates for Telegram games range between 5% and 20%, significantly lower than the traditional gaming benchmark of 20% to 30%. The analysis also notes that airdrops, particularly from "Hamster Kombat," led to a decline in excitement around Telegram tap-to-earn games. Hamster Kombat’s user base plummeted from 300 million in August to 41 million in November following its airdrop.
Despite this, the TON blockchain added over 100 million new accounts in the past 12 months, growing from around 6 million to more than 140 million.
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Frequently Asked Questions
What does increasing the Ethereum gas limit achieve?
Raising the gas limit allows each block to process more transactions, enhancing network throughput and reducing congestion. This improves user experience by potentially lowering transaction fees during peak demand.
How does Berachain’s Proof of Liquidity work?
Proof of Liquidity (PoL) aligns the network’s economic incentives with its applications by rewarding liquidity providers. This mechanism encourages deeper liquidity and sustainable growth for projects built on Berachain.
What is Uniswap V4’s key innovation?
Uniswap V4 introduces "Hooks," which are customizable smart contracts that allow developers to create tailored liquidity pools with unique features, such as dynamic fees, limit orders, and more.
Why are Telegram game retention rates low?
Low retention is attributed to the novelty-driven nature of many tap-to-earn games and over-reliance on airdrop incentives. Once airdrops are distributed, user engagement often declines significantly.
What is Retro Funding on Optimism?
Retro Funding rewards developers and projects that have contributed positively to the Optimism ecosystem. It retroactively funds valuable tools, infrastructure, and applications based on their impact.
How does Ondo GM facilitate access to traditional securities?
Ondo GM tokenizes real-world assets like stocks and ETFs, allowing global investors to gain exposure through blockchain-based tokens that can be traded freely outside U.S. jurisdictions.