Ethereum Surges on Meme Coin Frenzy and DeFi Growth

Ethereum's momentum continued into Q3 2026, with the network experiencing a 66% gain. This surge was driven by various factors, including over $10 billion in ETF inflows and more than $15 billion in corporate ETH purchases.

The DeFi sector also played a significant role, with total value locked reaching approximately $88 billion during the quarter. Robinhood Chain, an Ethereum Layer-2 network, launched its public mainnet on July 1, 2026, but instead of focusing on tokenized real-world assets, meme coins took center stage.

CASHCAT, the chain's flagship meme token, surged to a market cap between $150 million and $200 million shortly after launch, eventually reaching around $220 million. The chain registered over $800 million in daily decentralized exchange volume at its peak, with total value locked climbing rapidly into the hundreds of millions.

Alice Liu, CoinMarketCap research lead, noted the correlation between Bitcoin's recent rise and Ethereum's DeFi resurgence, highlighting Robinhood Chain's meme-driven attention as a significant factor in the current cycle.