Ethereum rethinks L2 role as activity rises but value secured declines

Ethereum’s long-standing imaginative and prescient of layer-2 networks as extensions of the bottom chain is being reassessed, whilst rollup utilization continues to develop. 

The shift comes amid two converging traits: fast progress in Ethereum’s personal layer-1 scaling roadmap and slower-than-expected advances in rollup decentralization.

In a latest essay on 3 February, Vitalik Buterin argued that the unique “rollup-centric roadmap” not totally displays Ethereum’s present evolution.

The feedback arrive at a time when on-chain knowledge reveals a widening hole between L2 exercise and the worth secured by these networks.

L2 utilization grows, however capital backing slips

In response to L2Beat data, complete worth secured throughout Ethereum rollups at the moment stands at $40.3 billion, down 13.2% year-on-year. 

The decline marks a notable shift from mid-2025, when worth secured peaked nearer to the $50 billion vary earlier than trending decrease into early 2026.

Supply: L2Beat

On the similar time, L2 transaction exercise has moved in the other way. Rollups are actually processing roughly 3,470 consumer operations per second (UOPS), a pointy enhance from near-flat ranges earlier in 2025. 

The step-change in exercise started round September and has largely been sustained, highlighting rising utilization whilst capital effectivity weakens.

The divergence means that rollups are more and more used for execution and low-cost transactions, however with no corresponding rise in property dedicated below Ethereum-level safety ensures.

L1 scaling reduces strain on rollups

Buterin’s reassessment displays broader modifications underway on Ethereum itself. Fuel charges on the bottom layer have remained low for prolonged intervals, and core builders are making ready for vital gas-limit will increase in 2026. 

Consequently, Ethereum not depends on rollups to supply block-space capability because it as soon as did.

In his publish, Buterin acknowledged that many L2s have struggled to succeed in full decentralization, with some initiatives brazenly signalling that they might not progress past partial trust-assumption fashions. 

In a number of instances, regulatory or operational necessities have led groups to retain management over sequencing or upgrades.

That actuality, Buterin argued, makes it impractical to proceed treating all L2s as “branded shards” of Ethereum, every anticipated to hold the identical social and safety obligations as the bottom chain.

What the information suggests

The present knowledge helps this reframing. Rising rollup exercise reveals that L2s stay central to Ethereum’s day-to-day utilization, notably for cost-sensitive transactions. 

Nonetheless, the decline in worth secured signifies that customers and builders might more and more view rollups as execution layers slightly than repositories for big swimming pools of capital.

As Ethereum’s base layer scales and absorbs extra demand straight, the ecosystem seems to be transitioning from a single, uniform L2 imaginative and prescient to a extra numerous set of networks, every optimized for various trade-offs.

Ultimate Ideas

• Rollup utilization continues to develop, however falling worth secured suggests a shift in how customers depend on L2s throughout the Ethereum ecosystem.
• With L1 scaling accelerating, Ethereum is repositioning rollups as differentiated networks slightly than uniform extensions of the bottom chain.