Ethereum ranks first among smart contract platforms in five key areas of digital asset finance — stablecoins, tokenized assets, applications, developers and investment products — according to asset manager Grayscale.

In a report, Grayscale Head of Research Zach Pandl laid out the network's position in each of these sectors, along with the value of the assets and investment products tied to Ethereum.

Nearly $140 Billion in Stablecoins

Ethereum hosts nearly half of all stablecoins, a share representing approximately $140 billion, according to Pandl. These digital tokens give users a way to hold dollar-denominated value on blockchain networks.

The network also accounts for roughly 40% of tokenized assets — a figure that exceeds twice the amount held on the next-largest chain. Tokenization refers to representing traditional financial instruments as digital tokens on a blockchain, allowing them to be transferred and settled using network infrastructure. Major financial firms have issued tokenized products on Ethereum, with issuers including BlackRock, WisdomTree and Invesco.

Application activity represents another area of leadership. More than 2,000 applications operate directly on Ethereum, while the network's Layer 2 ecosystem supports an additional 6,000. Layer 2 networks are protocols built on top of Ethereum that process transactions away from the main chain and settle results back to it, extending the base network's capacity.

Developer Activity and Investment Products

Developer activity is a further category in which Ethereum ranks first. Pandl noted that more developers build on Ethereum than on any other network.

The report also highlighted the investment products available to U.S. investors seeking exposure to ETH. Exchange-traded products linked to the token hold more than $13 billion in total assets, while CME-listed Ethereum futures carry more than $3 billion in open interest. Exchange-traded products are listed vehicles that provide price exposure through conventional brokerage accounts, while open interest measures the total value of futures contracts still outstanding. Together, these vehicles give investors additional ways to access Ethereum-related markets.

Ethereum as Financial Infrastructure

Pandl compared Ethereum to an operating system that supports a range of financial applications, describing the blockchain as a network of computers running open-source software to process transactions. He also drew a parallel between blockchain adoption and the internet's transformation of information sharing.

According to Grayscale, blockchains lower the barriers to transferring money and assets, and the report identifies stablecoins and tokenization as major forces reshaping payments, savings and investment. Pandl said the financial infrastructure of the future will require several technologies, including blockchain networks. The five areas examined in the report offer a concrete set of measures for tracking that transition across smart contract platforms.

Grayscale's assessment places Ethereum at the center of these developments, citing the network's stablecoin activity, tokenized assets, applications, developer base and investment products.