Wintermute said ETH has been under heavier pressure amid rising inflation and broader macro uncertainty, arguing it is not ideally positioned for a more chaotic crypto cycle. Over the past week, ETH fell about 10% and hovered near the $2,100 area after sustained selling, while derivatives positioning weakened. Sentiment indicators also deteriorated, with open interest down by $1B to $12.4B and Binance metrics pointing to a more fearful market tone.

The Ethereum Foundation recorded six departures or extended leaves across April and May, including long-time contributors Carl Beek and Julian Ma. The moves coincided with a team reshuffle aimed at reducing the Foundation's direct influence, while data still showed 169 core developers and ETH trading around $2,117.02.

HYPE moved above $48 on May 19, reaching $48.34 and marking a three-month high as trading interest shifted toward stock perpetual futures. Hyperliquid has become a key venue for pricing SpaceX pre-IPO tokens (SPCX), with multiple on-chain and off-chain perps citing valuations above $2.0T. Some market participants also expect tokenized stocks to benefit if US SEC innovation exemptions expand access to on-chain share trading.

On March 6, HIP-3 on Hyperliquid reached $2.2B in trading volume, accounting for 30.1% of activity on the platform, while the XYZ:CL crude oil contract saw a 140% daily volume spike to $242M. Crude oil, trading above $90 and briefly over $92, has become the fifth most traded HIP-3 asset as whales rotate into tokenized real-world futures and one trader manages a $3.3M short on CL alongside another wallet holding $315M in BTC and ETH longs.

In January 2026, Base became the most active Layer 2 network for stablecoin transfers, with USDC supply on the chain hitting a record level. Over 90% of Base's stablecoin balance is held in USDC, and the network now carries $4.81B in stablecoins, outpacing Arbitrum and Hyperliquid. More than 30% of on-chain activity on Base is linked to DeFi and other financial operations, supported by lending protocols such as Morpho and Aave.

According to CryptoRank data, several recently launched alternative L1 networks collectively raised up to $1.2B, yet their tokens are now down more than 96% from peak valuations. Projects such as Kadena, Moonbeam, Berachain and Scroll have seen daily users, on-chain fees, liquidity and developer engagement collapse, while most activity remains concentrated on Solana and Ethereum. Non-EVM chains outside Solana and over-funded L1s are increasingly viewed as redundant as Web3 teams prioritize more liquid ecosystems.

On March 5–6, 2026, Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin outlined his view that future crypto wallets will make heavy use of AI, but said large language models should be used conservatively for high-value transactions. He pointed to ongoing integrations such as Trust Wallet's AI features, while also urging Ethereum developers to adopt a more adventurous approach to application design and reduce legacy on-chain dependencies. Buterin added that AI could help users navigate complex DeFi tasks and potentially cut down on some scam vectors.

In 2025, Solana's role as a payment and settlement network strengthened, with total payment volume climbing 755.3% and surpassing the growth of many fintech platforms. The chain processed an estimated $2.61B in stablecoin transfers and captured 46% of stablecoin activity among comparable networks, supported by integrations with firms such as Revolut, VISA, Stripe, Worldpay, Western Union, and Fiserv.

On March 4, 2026, DeFi trader Sillytuna reported losing over $24 million in AUSD and other assets after a physical attack and coercion to transfer funds. The stolen stablecoins and BTC are now parked across several Ethereum and Bitcoin addresses, with parts bridged to Arbitrum, while investigators monitor movements. A 10% bounty has been offered for any returned funds, as protocols debate blacklisting policies instead of freezing assets outright.