The ENS airdrops have been one of the most anticipated airdrops on the Ethereum network. Owners of .ETH domain registered before October 31st was able to claim the tokens. Social media was abuzz with talk of the airdrop and the valuable tokens. The website where claims could be made went up on November 8th and users have been claiming their tokens since then.
The ENS airdrop has been a tremendous success so far. ENS token price spiked to a new all-time high on Wednesday, making substantial profits for its holders. However, the success of the airdrop has affected gas fees on the network.
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ETH Transaction Fees Spike
Gas prices following the spike of ENS to a new all-time high went as high as $56.97 for an average transaction fee and $29.01 for a median transaction. This is the second-highest that gas fees have ever been, with the highest recorded average of $70 recorded in May during the peak of the bull run. The success of ENS has only done more to drive up gas prices on the network.
ENS price hit new ATH on Wednesday | source: ENSUSD on TradingView.com
High fees on the Ethereum network have always been a cause for concern in the space. Although gas prices vary depending on the type of transaction being carried out, the fees are still high enough that they sometimes surpass the value of the assets being transacted.
It costs significantly more to carry out activities like minting NFTs, but the popularity of the platform and high network usage has made it so that even regular ERC-20 token transactions can average as high as $45 per transaction.
One upside of the increased gas fees has been the amount of ETH being taken out of circulation. Almost $4 billion worth of ETH tokens has been burned since EIP-1559 launched, totaling 844,000 ETH burned.
Open Interest In Ethereum Hit Record High
Interest in Ethereum has not died down even in the slightest. Individual and institutional investors alike continue to see the digital asset as a viable investment option and thus have continued to throw their hat in the ring with ETH. This has led to Ethereum Open Interest spiking to record levels in November.
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Data shows that the total aggregated open interest for ETH futures had hit a new all-time high of $12.6 billion on Wednesday, beating its previous high of $11.1 billion. This indicates that interest in the digital asset is at an all-time high.
Ethereum has also not disappointed its supporters. In only the first half of November, the asset has hit multiple all-time highs. Now, bulls look to take the price of ETH to the coveted $5,000 before the end of the year. With interest so high, the asset may very well beat this price before November ends.
Featured image from Blockworks, chart from TradingView.com
