The blockchain sector is reflecting signs of maturity, as evidenced by a significant indicator that highlights increasing adoption across decentralized finance, consumer applications, and new sectors.

A recent Onchain Revenue Report from 1kx reveals that user-paid fees in the blockchain ecosystem are projected to hit $19.8 billion in 2025, a notable increase from the record $9.7 billion collected in just the first half of the year.

These fees illustrate the total expenditure by users for transactions executed on blockchain networks and associated infrastructures, encapsulating trades, swaps, registrations, gaming profits, and subscriptions, among others.

While expectations for 2025 do not see fees surpassing the unprecedented $24.1 billion reached in 2021, the overall onchain fees reflect an impressive tenfold increase since 2020, marking an annual growth rate of around 60%.

Onchain Fees The value of onchain fees reached a record high in the first quarter of 2025, as projections suggest falling short of the 2021 peak. Source: 1kx

“We view fees paid as the best indicator, reflecting repeatable utility that users and firms are willing to pay for,” stated the report authors. “As protocols mature and regulation improves, the ability to generate and distribute consistent fee revenue will separate durable networks from early-stage experiments.”

Beyond acting as a barometer of financial health, escalating onchain fees indicate the greater acceptance of blockchain technology, particularly as it pertains to themes like real-world asset tokenization, decentralized physical infrastructure networks (DePINs), and wallet-based consumer apps.

The 1kx report indicates this surge is emblematic of a structural shift — cryptocurrencies are shifting from being mere speculative tools to becoming a legitimate revenue-generating asset class with real network benefits.

Growth in Tokenized Assets

The document also spotlighted the swift rise in tokenized real-world assets (RWAs), with onchain values outside of stablecoins exceeding $28 billion by the third quarter of 2025, a figure that has since grown past $35 billion, as reported by RWA.xyz.

1kx notes that the total value of tokenized assets onchain has more than doubled within a year, with fees from these assets increasing at an even faster pace — indicating a rise in user engagement and market acceptance.

RWA Market The market for tokenized RWAs continues to surge. Source: 1kx

Significant investments in asset tokenization are being made by major Wall Street entities such as JPMorgan, BlackRock, and BNY Mellon. As previously reported by Cointelegraph, JPMorgan has converted one of its private equity funds on its internal Kinexys blockchain, while BNY Mellon has teamed up with the RWA platform Securitize to integrate collateralized loan obligations onchain.

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