Dune Digest #022 – Key On‑Chain Trends and Developments
July 2025 – A roundup of the most notable data‑driven stories that shaped the DeFi and broader crypto ecosystem over the past month.
1. Ethereum’s 10‑year milestone and the rise of BuilderNet
On 30 July 2025 the Ethereum mainnet celebrated its tenth anniversary. The occasion was marked by the production of the first block of its “second decade” by BuilderNet, a decentralized block‑building service created by Flashbots and secured with trusted execution environments (TEEs).
BuilderNet’s purpose is to address the long‑standing problem of miner‑extractable value (MEV) by moving block construction away from a zero‑sum game toward a neutral, permissionless marketplace. The platform is already returning more than $1 million per month to end‑users and has refunded over 1 000 ETH in cumulative MEV value. The initiative is being hailed as a concrete example of how Ethereum’s infrastructure is evolving beyond scaling to include decentralised governance and incentive alignment.
Vitalik Buterin highlighted an often‑overlooked metric in a brief blog post: Ethereum has never gone down. While total value locked, active addresses and protocol revenue dominate most dashboards, the uninterrupted operation of a permissionless network for a full decade remains a distinctive achievement.
A community‑wide “Believe in SomETHing” campaign has also taken off, with dozens of projects publicly reaffirming confidence in Ethereum’s long‑term roadmap. The sentiment underscores the network’s transition from an experimental platform to the primary layer for DeFi, NFTs, DAOs, stablecoins and real‑world assets (RWAs).
Takeaway: BuilderNet demonstrates that MEV can be re‑purposed as a public good, reinforcing Ethereum’s narrative of decentralisation and sustainable incentive design as the network moves into its second decade.
2. Terminal Finance fuels liquidity for Converge
Terminal Finance, the liquidity layer for reward‑bearing assets on the upcoming Converge protocol, has secured $163 million in pre‑deposits on Ethereum. The breakdown includes:
| Asset | Amount |
|---|---|
| USDe | $109 M |
| WETH | $37 M |
| WBTC | $16 M |
More than 30 000 users have locked funds, receiving receipt tokens (e.g., tUSDe) that generate “Roots” rewards proportional to deposit size and lock‑up period. USDe deposits enjoy a 30× multiplier from Ethena, while WETH gains a 2× boost on ether.fi loyalty points.
Yield generated during the pre‑launch phase is routed to a dedicated smart contract, earmarked for reinvestment into Converge’s infrastructure. The activity sits alongside Ethereal (>$1 B) and Strata ($35 M), signalling a strong appetite for the Converge ecosystem. USDe’s total supply has already surpassed $8.5 billion.
Takeaway: The sizable inflow of capital into Terminal Finance highlights growing confidence in Converge’s liquidity model and further validates USDe as a cornerstone stablecoin for the next wave of DeFi products.
3. Base overtakes Solana in daily token launches – Zora’s creator‑coin boom
Analytics show that Base has now eclipsed Solana in the number of daily token launches, a shift largely driven by Zora’s “Coins” on‑chain primitive. Zora transforms each user profile and individual post into a tradable token, creating a feedback loop where content creation fuels liquidity and vice‑versa.
Key statistics from the past month:
- ≈ 3 million active traders on Base
- 1.6 million new creator coins minted
- > $470 million in cumulative trading volume
Each creator coin is capped at 1 billion units, split evenly between the creator (vested over five years) and the open market. A 1 % transaction fee is automatically sent back to the content originator in $ZORA, directly tying engagement to earnings.
The model has ignited debate about the longevity of “content coins,” but the data points to a rapidly expanding creator‑economy on Base, underpinned by Zora’s integration into the new Base App.
Takeaway: Zora’s creator‑coin framework is redefining how on‑chain social activity can generate economic value, positioning Base as a leading hub for tokenised content and memecoin dynamics.
4. Linea unveils tokenomics and ETH‑burn mechanism
Linea, an Ethereum‑aligned Layer‑2 solution, released the design for its native token $LINEA. The protocol will be the first L2 to burn ETH at the protocol level, allocating 20 % of all net transaction fees (paid in ETH) to permanent removal from circulation. The remaining 80 % of fees will be used to burn $LINEA itself.
The token distribution allocates 85 % to the ecosystem, funding public‑goods, research, and builder incentives. A snapshot for the anticipated airdrop has already been taken, which may explain the relatively muted short‑term activity spike.
Network usage remains robust:
- > 263 million total transactions
- > 7 million unique addresses
- ≈ 2 million contracts deployed
- Median transaction fee: ≈ $0.02
These figures suggest that Linea’s fee‑burn model is being adopted without sacrificing user experience.
Takeaway: By linking L2 activity directly to ETH scarcity, Linea aligns its growth with Ethereum’s value‑capture narrative, potentially creating a new source of on‑chain deflationary pressure.
5. Fungi – AI‑driven yield optimisation on Base
In April 2025, Fungi, an AI‑powered DeFi agent, launched on Base to automate stable‑coin yield farming. To date, it has processed $77 million in total volume, with $20 million routed through Morpho vaults alone.
Fungi’s algorithm continuously reallocates USDC across multiple protocols (Aave, Morpho, Moonwell, Fluid), balancing APY, incentives, gas costs and protocol‑specific risk. Users interact through personal smart‑contract accounts, securing full custodial control while leveraging session‑key permissions for automation.
Key integrations include top vault curators such as Gauntlet, ExtraFi, Clearstar, and Steakhouse. Assets under management (AUM) have grown to ~$322 k USDC, reflecting both retail demand and interest from on‑chain treasuries.
Takeaway: Fungi exemplifies the merging of AI with permissionless finance, offering a scalable, non‑custodial solution for stable‑coin yield optimisation that could become a baseline service for both individual investors and institutional treasuries.
6. Overall Insights from Dune Digest #022
| Trend | Implication |
|---|---|
| MEV redistribution via BuilderNet | Incentive‑aligned block building may become standard, reducing extractable value capture by miners/searchers. |
| Liquidity aggregation for Converge | Growing capital inflows signal trust in new DeFi composability layers and the expanding role of USDe. |
| Creator‑coin economy on Base | Tokenised social content opens novel revenue streams and could reshape the memecoin landscape. |
| ETH‑burn on L2 (Linea) | Direct L2 contribution to ETH deflation strengthens the economic link between scaling solutions and L1 value. |
| AI‑driven yield automation (Fungi) | Automation and AI will likely lower entry barriers for retail yield farming, increasing overall market efficiency. |
Conclusion
Dune Digest #022 paints a picture of a maturing ecosystem where decentralisation, incentive alignment, and data‑driven automation coexist. From Ethereum’s decade‑long resilience to novel token‑economics on emerging layers, the underlying theme is clear: infrastructure upgrades are converging with product innovation, setting the stage for the next phase of on‑chain growth.
The information presented here is for educational purposes only and does not constitute financial advice. Readers are urged to conduct their own research before making any investment decisions.
Source: https://dune.com/blog/dune-digest-022
