DeFi dApps enjoyed over $11 billion in volume in the first quarter of 2020, with decentralized finance and exchange volume both more than doubling compared to the previous quarter. In their quarterly report, dApp information portal Dapp reports that Ethereum remains the favorite blockchain for dApp creators to build on, with TRON reporting the most active daily users of all blockchains. EOS meanwhile has continued to struggle, with numbers falling heavily in a variety of metrics.
Volume Up, but Users Down
Dapp released their summary of the dApp ecosystem on Wednesday, noting strong shifts in both directions for a number of categories:
The big winners in terms of volume were clearly decentralized exchanges and finance platforms, which both saw volume double in just three months, which echoes the increase in interest around DeFi in general so far in 2020.
In fact, all sectors increased in volume except for social, which lost nearly half its volume, and tools, which has seen a monumental drop from $23.32 million to just under $4 million so far this year. Conversely however, its active users have ballooned by 58% during the same period, which is at odds with the pattern seen in most other sectors – finance, exchanges, gaming, gambling, and others all saw an increase in volume but a drop in active users.
This suggests that these sectors and the platforms within them have ridden the wave of initial enthusiasm and the flurry of signups that resulted upon launch, leaving them with a core of users who use them regularly.
Gambling Stays on Top
Dapp also report that, as at the end of March 2020, there were 1,259 dApps across the top six blockchains, with gambling remaining the most popular category:
Ethereum is still clearly leading the pack, with TRON now holding its own in terms of active dApps. Indeed, TRON has in fact overtaken Ethereum in terms of daily active dApp users on its chain, boasting an average of 21,606 daily active users in Q1 compared to Ethereum’s 20,994.
All blockchains have seen a double digit drop in terms of new dApp development, which is probably to do with the coronavirus pandemic, but EOS has been hit particularly badly, seeing new dApp, active dApp, new user, and active user numbers drop between 36% and 88%. This is compared to the likes of Ethereum, which has seen new and active user numbers increase by around 42%.
dApp Market in Good Health
Overall the dApp market seems in rude health, which is impressive considering the toll that the coronavirus will be taking on developers and the ecosystem as a whole. It is encouraging that more money is being spent on decentralized services and that many dApps seem to have found a core user base which is using them more and more, and we can look forward to improved figures in Q2.
