Decentralized finance (DeFi) and major blockchain networks were negatively impacted by declining on-chain activity during the challenging first half of 2026 for the cryptocurrency market.
According to Binance Research’s Half-Year 2026 On-Chain Markets study, which was released on Thursday, Ethereum, Solana, and other prominent blockchains saw a decline in activity, revenue, and market value, while DeFi lost a significant amount of value. The survey also revealed that despite the market’s downturn, a certain sectors witnessed significant growth, such as prediction markets and tokenized real-world assets (RWAs).
Binance Research claims that capital shifting from one blockchain to another was not the cause of the decline. Rather, the on-chain market as a whole declined.
During this period, several networks saw significant transformations, including Ethereum. Spot Ethereum exchange-traded funds (ETFs) decreased their holdings from above 6 million ETH to 5.2 million ETH, according to the research team.
Digital asset treasury firms raised their Ethereum holdings from 6 million to 7.7 million Ethereum at the same time. Thus, more ETH is now held by corporate treasury entities than by spot ETFs. According to the study, Bitmine currently holds nearly 5% of all Ethereum.
According to Binance Research, treasury businesses now own more ETH than spot ETFs, with Bitmine alone holding around 5% of the whole supply.
Half-Year 2026: On-Chain Markets
A full breakdown of H1’s on-chain contraction, DeFi liquidity retreating, and the tokenized RWA and prediction market growth heading into H2.
Read the full report 👇https://t.co/dkQIbznxsx
— Binance Research (@BinanceResearch) July 30, 2026
Source: Binance.com
The study also discovered that lower transaction costs did not boost Ethereum’s profits. In comparison to 2025, average gas prices decreased by almost 75% when the network raised its gas cap to about 60 million.
The network was also used by more users, as seen by a roughly 50% increase in transactions. Ethereum’s income is predicted to decline by around 53% this year despite the increased activity. Additionally, according to Binance Research, Ethereum’s Foundation focused only on the core protocol, while additional organizations like EthLabs and Ethereum Institutional were established to promote adoption and provide value to the ETH ecosystem.
Solana’s time was far more difficult. Transaction fees and tips paid on the network are measured by its real economic value (REV), which decreased from $40 million in January to $14 million in June.
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