Ethereum has evolved from a basic platform for transferring ETH to a multi-functional ecosystem, offering wide-ranging services from financial applications to collectible assets and second-layer networks. While it still plays the role of facilitating simple ETH transfers, Ethereum’s main activities centre on two areas: marketplaces and token transfers.
Exchanges like Uniswap have emerged as highly useful applications, offering on-chain trading in the long-tail of digital assets. For example, in the first half of 2024 Uniswap alone was responsible for generating 15% of all Ethereum transaction fees.
Ethereum is also used for settling transfers of a wide range of digital assets — particularly stablecoins, like Tether (USDT) and USD Coin (USDC), which provide global US dollar access outside the traditional banking system. Alongside stablecoins, a broad range of tokens — tied to things like applications, collectibles, or memes — are also available on Ethereum.