According to a report by market intelligence firm Messari, the Tron blockchain experienced an increase in usage during the first quarter of 2023. The network activity remained mostly unaffected by several lawsuits announced by the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) against Tron ecosystem tokens. The Tron blockchain’s native token, TRX, witnessed a nearly 20% increase in market cap quarter-on-quarter (QoQ), with its total quarterly revenue climbing to $90.04 million, an 88% increase from Q4 2022.
Staking Activity and Transaction Count
The average daily transactions on the Tron blockchain grew by 7.7% to about 7 million during the first quarter of 2023. Staking activity on the network partially contributed to the increase, with the total transaction count originating from staking activity up by 197% QoQ, despite accounting for only 3% of all transactions on the TRX network. The State of Tron report commissioned by Tron stated that smart contracts triggered and TRX transfers dominated transaction activity on the network, accounting for 88% of all transactions.
Transaction Fees and Total Value Locked
Transaction fees on the Tron blockchain saw a surge in the first quarter, with the average transaction fee in TRX and USD up by 59.2% and 80.2%, respectively. Committee proposal No. 79, which passed in the previous quarter, played a crucial role in prompting the increase in transaction fees. The Total Value Locked (TVL) denominated in USD increased by 18.8% during the first quarter of the year, while TVL denominated in TRX noted a minor slump of 0.5%. The top protocols by TVL on top of the Tron network, JustLend and JustStables, witnessed an increase of 26% and 21%, respectively, due to the broader market recovery throughout Q1.
USDT Market Cap
Tron remains in a substantial position in the stablecoin landscape and is ahead of several rival chains with regard to the market cap of hosted stablecoins. At the end of Q1, Tron held more than $43 billion, up from nearly $33 billion QoQ. Tron’s USDT market cap increased by 30% to $10 billion QoQ, owing to Tether swapping $400 million USDT from ERC-20 to Tron. Despite the lawsuits announced by the SEC, the Tron blockchain has managed to maintain a steady increase in usage, transaction count, and market cap.