Coinbase Layer 2 Base Takes This Industry by Storm, Captures 46% of Transactions

Coinbase’s Layer 2 network – Base – has witnessed a resurgence of user activity. Franklin Templeton’s latest analysis revealed that Base has received significant traction from SocialFi applications such as Friend.Tech.

Friend.Tech’s model, which financializes social interactions, has drawn attention, particularly with the launch of its version 2 platform and the airdrop of its FRIEND token.

Additionally, Base has experienced a notable surge in the supply of USDC on its network, surpassing $2.5 billion. This increase coincided with Coinbase’s announcement in December 2023 of free USDC transfers on Base via the Coinbase Wallet, indicating a strategic move to boost Base’s ecosystem and facilitate seamless transactions for users.

Base Hits Home Run in SocialFi

According to Franklin Templeton’s latest report, “Base has hit a home run in the world of SocialFi,” with several of the top crypto-based social applications building on the Layer 2 network. Stats revealed by the asset manager indicate that Base handles approximately 46% of all SocialFi transactions, making this category a crucial area for the network’s adoption and expansion.

One notable platform on Base is Friend.Tech, is an exclusively mobile application that monetizes users’ social value. On Friend.Tech, users can purchase “keys” or “shares” of influencers to access their chatrooms. Friend.Tech recently launched version 2 of its platform along with an airdrop of its token, FRIEND, on May 3rd.

Currently, FRIEND is traded with a market cap of $200 million and is fully owned by Friend.Tech’s users. The backing of the largest publicly traded US cryptocurrency exchange has been crucial for Base, which, according to Franklin Templeton, has managed to create a powerful combination of SocialFi applications and direct integration with Coinbase users.

As a result, Base has managed to strongly capture a significant portion of SocialFi activity and maintain its leadership in the Ethereum L2 sector moving forward.

Increased User Activity

Base has seen a notable increase in net ETH deposits, as reported earlier this week, with figures surpassing 6,500 ETH. In comparison, its competitors Arbitrum and Optimism received significantly fewer deposits, with Arbitrum receiving half of Base’s deposits and Optimism receiving only a fifth.

This trend suggested that investors favor Base for deploying their capital, which can be attributed to its established infrastructure and perceived reliability over its competitors.

With $5.45 billion in total value locked (TVL), Base is now ranked as the third-largest Ethereum Layer 2 network, according to L2BEAT. It trails behind Arbitrum One and OP Mainnet, which have $16.14 billion and $6.99 billion locked, respectively.