Ethereum Reclaims DeFi Spotlight as Bots Drive $480B Stablecoin Surge
Ethereum mainnet is making a strong comeback to decentralized finance (DeFi) dominance, driven by stablecoin activity and bot usage that point toward utility-based crypto applications.
According to a June 4 report by trading platform CEX.io, Ethereum settled 4.84 million stablecoin transactions in May, valued at $480 billion—the highest volume ever for the network.
Mainnet Rebounds Amid Shifting Liquidity Trends
Cex.io analyst Illia Otychenko attributed the resurgence to reduced transaction fees at the beginning of 2025. Lower fees helped reverse the steady flight of users and capital to layer-2 (L2) blockchains and competitors Solana and Avalanche.
The result: Ethereum mainnet stablecoin market capitalization increased 11% year-to-date, regaining market share from L2s. Despite that, total stablecoin volume on L2s decreased only by 1%, which means activity isn’t collapsing but consolidating.
Bots Improve Market Efficiency, Not Just MEV Exploits
While bots have long been blamed for MEV extraction and sandwich attacks, their recent impact on Ethereum has been far more beneficial.
Cex.io noted that bots significantly improved stablecoin liquidity on decentralized exchanges (DEXs), which helped drive stablecoin swaps to the top trading category. Swaps represented 37% of Ethereum DEX volume in April and 32% in May.
USDC was the most traded asset and reflected users’ growing demand for stable and borderless payment tools instead of speculative tokens.
Stablecoin Growth Points to Real-World Adoption
Otychenko emphasized that this is not a new DeFi trend. “Speculative tokens come and go, but stablecoins stay since they solve real problems,” pointing to demand for stable payments in emerging markets.
He also said that Ethereum is emerging as the settlement layer for stablecoins, bots, and utility-driven DeFi infrastructure—provided it can maintain a low-fee, high-efficiency environment.
Cross-Layer Fragmentation Remains a Threat
Despite bullish momentum, Ethereum has one significant problem: fragmentation of liquidity and cost inefficiencies within its ecosystem.
“The network needs to solve cost and liquidity fragmentation between layers,” Otychenko said. “This isn’t just a technical issue. This is what will decide whether Ethereum will lead or follow in the future of adoption.”
As DeFi matures into a more utility-based economy, Ethereum’s ability to roll up its infrastructure and streamline cross-layer experiences can dictate how long it can retain its regained DeFi crown.
