ETHEREUM REVENUE PLUNGES 44% DESPITE RECORD PRICE SURGE - Ethereum’s financial engine stalled in August even as ETH soared to new highs. - Revenue from token burns — the share of network fees accruing to Ether holders, fell 44%, dropping to $14.1M from July’s $25.6M, according to Token Terminal. - The pullback came as ETH rallied 240% since April and hit an all-time high of $4,957 on Aug. 24. - Network fees also slid 20% month-over-month, down to $39.7M. Analysts point to Ethereum’s Dencun upgrade, which slashed transaction costs on layer-2s, as the main reason. - While cheaper transactions boost adoption, they also cut into Ethereum’s core revenue model. - Critics argue the fundamentals look shaky. However, supporters counter that Ethereum remains the backbone of DeFi and financial infrastructure. - Institutional interest, meanwhile, remains strong. Etherealize raised $40M in September to push Ethereum adoption on Wall Street. Bitwise CIO Matt Hougan called ETH staking “a compelling income stream” for institutions. - Yet ETF flows reveal cracks. U.S. spot Ether ETFs saw four straight days of outflows during Labor Day week, with $787.6M pulled. That’s a stark reversal from August’s $3.87B inflows.