Unchained
Ethena's L1 Shows Fat Apps Are on the Rise. Can They Beat Fat Protocols? - Ep. 804
Mar 21, 2025
Ryan Watkins, Co-founder at Syncracy Capital and expert in the crypto economy, shares groundbreaking insights on the new trend of "Fat Apps" out-earning traditional blockchains. He discusses why applications like Ethena are thriving in revenue generation, and what this means for major platforms like Ethereum and Solana. Watkins explains Ethena's bold move to launch its own blockchain, the changing dynamics of value capture, and how future blockchain architectures will evolve to stay competitive in this fast-paced market.
46:05
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Quick takeaways
- The rise of 'Fat Apps' indicates a shift in the crypto landscape, where applications are now generating more revenue than their underlying blockchains.
- Ethena's launch of a new EVM-compatible blockchain signifies a strategic effort to attract institutional investors and expand the total addressable market in crypto.
Deep dives
Expansion of Applications in Crypto
Recent trends indicate that many blockchain applications are starting to gain a larger share of revenue from transaction fees compared to the underlying infrastructure. Applications like Ethereum and Solana are reported to now earn 50-60% of all fees, a substantial increase from just a few years ago. This shift suggests that as these applications grow financially stronger, they may seek vertical integration to enhance profitability and deliver better services to users. A few examples include Jupiter and Uniswap, which have evolved from single-function platforms to offering a variety of services.
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