Robinhood Chain, an Ethereum Layer 2 network built on Arbitrum, generated approximately $843,000 in user fees while paying only about $1,600 to Ethereum for settlement and data availability. Analyst Lorenzo Valente noted that Robinhood captured 89% of revenue, Arbitrum 10%, and Ethereum just 0.15%. This disparity has fueled debate over the value Layer 2 chains provide to Ethereum. Ethereum co-founder Joe Lubin argued that low mainnet fees are essential for ecosystem growth, as broader usage of ETH for gas, collateral, and staking drives long-term demand. Robinhood Chain launched its mainnet on July 1, with $70 million in bridged Ether and $100 million total value locked.
According to Ethereum Daily, user fees on Robinhood Chain exceeded $843,000, while the network remitted roughly $1,600 to Ethereum for data availability and settlement. The data, as reported, highlights a significant gap between what users pay and what Ethereum receives.
Crypto analyst Lorenzo Valente shared an earlier snapshot showing revenue of $816,000 and Ethereum costs of $1,538. Valente stated that Robinhood was earning 89% of the revenue, while Arbitrum received 10% and Ethereum only 0.15%.
The chain is built using Arbitrum technology, with 10% of protocol revenue allocated to the Arbitrum ecosystem. Of that, 8% goes to the DAO treasury and 2% to developer funding.
Ethereum Daily noted that the fee capture assessment did not give a full view of the network’s value. Robinhood introduced Stock Tokens through Robinhood Wallet in over 120 countries, potentially onboarding new users to the ecosystem.
Joe Lubin supported low fees on Ethereum, saying that “the fees of Ethereum Layer 1 should stay low in order to foster growth.” He argued that more firms would use mainnet, Layer 2 networks, and private chains, driving wider ETH demand through gas, collateral, and staking.
Robinhood Chain launched its public mainnet on July 1 as an Ethereum Layer 2 for real assets, trading, and decentralized finance. As reported earlier, the network reached $70 million in bridged Ether and $100 million in total value locked, with Uniswap daily volume around $500 million.
The discussion now highlights the difference between fee revenue and broader network usage. Ethereum gains little in user fees compared to Robinhood and Arbitrum, but its long-term success may depend on whether these new users generate reliable demand for ETH through transactions, settlement, and collateral markets.
