Why Are Ethereum (ETH) Users 'Willing To Pay' Over $15M In Fees?

A report from venture capital firm a16z’s cryptocurrency research team delves into why Ethereum ETH/USD remains the most popular smart contract network despite its expensive gas fees.

What Happened: In the report, a16z presented an overview of how the cryptocurrency industry has evolved over the years. One of the key takeaways was how Ethereum stood out as the unrivaled leader in the web3 conversation, despite the emergence of newer blockchains that offer lower transaction fees.

See Also: HOW TO BUY ETHEREUM (ETH)

Ethereum has far and away the most builders, with nearly 4,000 monthly active devs. Next is Solana with nearly 1,000 and Bitcoin at about 500.

Ethereum’s overwhelming mindshare helps explain why users have been willing to pay more than $15M in gas fees a day on average. pic.twitter.com/pBGywymKtz

— a16z (@a16z) May 17, 2022

“Ethereum’s overwhelming mindshare helps explain why its users have been willing to pay more than $15 million in fees per day on average just to use the blockchain – remarkable for such a young project,” stated the report.

The firm’s researchers attribute much of Ethereum’s success to its early start and the health of its community. Ethereum has 4,000 monthly active developers, noted a16z, putting it miles ahead of Bitcoin BTC/USD, which has around 500 developers, and rival blockchain Solana SOL/USD which has close to 1,000 developers.

Read Next: Vitalik Buterin Wants Ethereum To Be A More 'Bitcoin-like System'

Price Action: According to data from Benzinga Pro, Ethereum was trading at $2,070, down 0.84% over the last 24 hours.