[DigitalToday reporter Yoonseo Lee (이윤서)] Ethereum is facing slower trading volumes and weaker prices, but network activity and ecosystem deposits have increased.

Crypto media outlet Cryptopolitan reported on June 18 (local time) that Ethereum recorded 3.6 million daily transactions and 600,000 daily active wallets in the first half of 2026, maintaining its status as a key hub for DeFi and stablecoin transfers.

The key point is that prices and network indicators have diverged. Token Terminal data estimated total deposits across the Ethereum ecosystem, including apps and vaults, at $316.2 billion. That is up more than 22 percent from the previous quarter. Demand for lending, liquidity provision and airdrop farming supported the rise in deposits.

The first-half trend was driven first by strength in the first quarter. After posting strong performance in the first quarter, Ethereum carried some momentum in trading activity into the second quarter. Demand for new asset tokenisation was cited as the biggest driver behind the expansion in network value locked. The number of tokenised assets on Ethereum was tallied at 1,058, and holders rose 11 percent in a month to 199,156. Trading in real-world asset (RWA) tokens also rose more than 30 percent over the same period.

Recent upgrades that lowered gas fees further were also cited as a factor behind increased activity. Ethereum created an environment where small investors can trade more easily. Some network activity, however, stemmed from dust attacks, and cases also emerged in which assets were drained from personal wallets in the process.

A crisis narrative around the Ethereum network has also been raised. An analysis said that as core engineering staff leave the Ethereum Foundation, the structure is shifting to rely more on institutional demand, a return of retail investors and the pull of DeFi apps. Etherealize, however, assessed that Ethereum is drawing in large-scale financial transactions based on an open on-chain structure, and that this structure shows clear advantages compared with private networks.

Ethereum prices, by contrast, did not keep pace with the network's growth. Ethereum is down 17.2 percent so far in the second quarter this year and posted a net loss of 29.1 percent in the first quarter. In the first half, Ethereum open interest (OEM) fell from more than $17 billion to $10 billion. The Fear and Greed Index also fluctuated between neutral and fear.

Market participants' risk appetite also weakened. Large-scale on-chain transfers by whales fell 86 percent in June. Retail investor sentiment also stayed low throughout the first half. Price stagnation and slowing whale activity were interpreted as a signal of limited confidence in Ethereum.

In this situation, the market is watching whether network value and token prices will link up. Ethereum's core narrative now centres on whether token prices can follow as the network is used as more valuable large-scale financial infrastructure. Whether expanded institutional use can translate into actual buying and support market prices remains a point to watch.

From the @ethereum Q1 2026 report: "The other lesson worth drawing from the Internet is that open, permissionless networks tend to beat closed ones. We are now seeing this theme play out in financial infrastructure, and [...] Ethereum has crossed the threshold with… pic.twitter.com/TMlTfXEiU0