Ethereum's daily trading volume has exceeded 2.6 million transactions, laying its undisputed foundation in the industry On January 15, 2026, the Ethereum mainnet confirmed that its daily trading volume had reached 2.6 million transactions the previous day, setting a new historical record. This milestone is not only a leap in data, but also the most powerful proof of its absolute cornerstone position as a decentralized finance (DeFi) and application layer. The cornerstone resilience behind the explosive trading volume This record is not accidental, but the result of the combined effect of network capabilities and ecological needs: one ⃣ Continuous expansion and evolution: Following the cost reduction of the 2025 series upgrade, the plan to raise the gas cap to 80 million in January 2026 has released clear expectations for the main network processing capacity and provided a solid foundation for transaction volume growth. two ⃣ Robust network performance: While transaction volume surges, network fees remain stable without severe congestion. This confirms that Ethereum has successfully evolved from an expensive and slow monolithic chain to an efficient settlement layer capable of carrying massive activities. three ⃣ The all-round driving force of the ecosystem: the increasing demand for key sectors such as payment and AI, as well as frequent settlement interactions between Layer 2 and the mainnet, have jointly promoted the outbreak of on chain activities, demonstrating the diversity and vitality of its ecosystem. The four core dimensions of cornerstone from the perspective of trading volume one ⃣ Unparalleled ecosystem and network effects: 2.6 million daily transactions, originating from the world's largest DApps, developer communities, and assets such as mainstream stablecoins and RWAs. The vast majority of Layer 2 has chosen it as the secure settlement layer, forming a multi-layered extended ecosystem centered around Ethereum. two ⃣ The ultimate guarantee of security and decentralization: the ability to support such a huge amount of value settlement depends on its position as the safest smart contract platform. The pledge value of billions of dollars and the highly dispersed network of validators constitute the economic security barrier with the highest attack cost. three ⃣ By continuously upgrading, we can solve the fundamental bottleneck: the transaction volume has reached a new high without a surge in fees, directly benefiting from upgrades such as EIP-4844 and the increase in Gas cap. This indicates that Ethereum has effectively addressed scalability challenges and solidified its foundation as a sustainable infrastructure through a roadmap centered around Rollup. four ⃣ The asset core that integrates value and utility: high activity continuously activates the burning deflation mechanism of ETH, while its dual attributes as an institutional level allocation asset (through ETFs) and interest bearing asset (through staking) are increasingly prominent, forming a solid value loop. The daily trading volume of 2.6 million transactions far exceeds that of competitors, which is not only a reflection of short-term market heat, but also a direct result of Ethereum's leadership as a global decentralized settlement layer and technological standard. Despite facing many challenges, Ethereum's moat built on capital accumulation, developer consensus, security models, and technological evolution capabilities will firmly occupy an unshakable cornerstone position in the blockchain ecosystem in 2026. This record indicates that its carrying boundary as the core infrastructure of the digital economy is still expanding.