Published on: July 26, 2025
By: CyberDudeBivash | cyberdudebivash.com
π§ Introduction: Ethereum at a Glance
Since its launch in 2015, Ethereum (ETH) has evolved from a programmable smart contract platform into the beating heart of decentralized finance (DeFi), NFTs, Web3, and more.With the successful transition to Ethereum 2.0 and the implementation of Proof of Stake (PoS), the Ethereum network now stands as a scalable, energy-efficient, and increasingly modular blockchain.This article explores the current state of the Ethereum network in 2025, analyzing key aspects like architecture, performance metrics, ecosystem trends, and cybersecurity.
ποΈ Ethereum Network Architecture (2025)
Ethereumβs architecture has undergone significant transformations since the days of gas-guzzling PoW mining. Here's how it works today:
π 1. Consensus Layer: Proof of Stake (PoS)
- Ethereum officially retired PoW during The Merge (2022).
- Now runs on validator nodes, which stake ETH to secure the network.
- ~1 million validators participating (as of mid-2025).
- Rewards distributed for proposing, attesting, and finalizing blocks.
π¦ 2. Execution Layer
- Formerly known as Ethereum 1.0.
- Hosts smart contracts, processes transactions, handles EVM (Ethereum Virtual Machine).
- Still the heart of application-level logic (DeFi, NFTs, DAOs).
πΆ 3. Data Availability via Proto-Danksharding (EIP-4844)
- Introduced βblobsβ for cheap and scalable off-chain data storage.
- Designed for rollup-centric scalability.
- Reduces L2 transaction costs significantly.
π 4. Rollups & Layer 2s
- Major L2s like Optimism, Arbitrum, zkSync, and Base dominate throughput.
- Offload most transaction execution, reducing base-layer congestion.
- Ethereum mainnet becomes a settlement layer for L2 proofs.
π Network Stats (As of July 2025)
Metric | Value |
---|
Total ETH Staked | ~40 million ETH |
Active Validators | ~1 million |
Avg. Gas Price | ~18 gwei (lower via L2s) |
Daily Transactions (L1) | ~1.2 million |
L2 TPS (Rollups) | 30β50 TPS (combined) |
TVL in DeFi (Ethereum) | ~$110 billion |
Average Block Time | ~12 seconds |