A Coinbase-built community simply edged previous Solana in DeFi deposits, but Ethereum’s worth barely observed. Earlier than crediting Base for a comeback, test what TVL actually measures, who pockets the charges, and which single worth stage might settle the controversy.
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Coinbase (NASDAQ:COIN | COIN Price Prediction) now runs a community that holds extra money in decentralized finance (DeFi) than Solana (CRYPTO:SOL). Based on DeFiLlama’s chain rankings on November 7, 2026, Coinbase’s Base has $5.82 billion in complete worth locked (TVL), the crypto deposited in its lending, buying and selling, and yield apps. That places it forward of Solana’s $5.24 billion by $580 million, an 11% lead.
Base, a layer-2 community constructed on Ethereum (CRYPTO:ETH), provides low transaction charges and settles again to Ethereum’s important chain, which nonetheless holds the highest spot in DefiLlama’s rankings with $43.51 billion. Coinbase has not issued a press launch on the milestone, and its October 29 earnings name gave no TVL determine for Base.
Neither coin’s worth has moved a lot. ETH trades at $2,232, up 0.2% in 24 hours, whereas SOL trades at $89.59, down 0.4%. So if a community constructed by Coinbase has handed Solana, is Ethereum regaining its footing?
What Coinbase Earns When Base Grows
Base has no native token. As an alternative, Coinbase earns sequencer charges, the fees for the service that orders and processes transactions on Base. On the October 29 name, Chief Monetary Officer Alesia Haas stated that “sequencer charges are essentially the most direct monetization level for tokenized equities in the present day.” Base customers pay these charges in ETH, creating a transparent hyperlink between Base’s development and Ethereum.
Base is only one half of a bigger enterprise. Coinbase’s subscription and companies income, which incorporates USDC stablecoin revenue, staking rewards, mortgage curiosity, and Coinbase One, made up roughly 49% of complete internet revenues within the third quarter. Coinbase additionally holds greater than 80 licenses globally and reviews $377 billion in property on its platform.
Coinbase markets Base because the No. 1 layer-2 for spot crypto buying and selling and DeFi TVL. It makes use of the community for tokenized shares, funds, AI brokers, and its Borrow/Lend product, the place common balances reached $1.87 billion. CEO Brian Armstrong tied Base’s development to loans backed by Bitcoin (CRYPTO:BTC), saying Base “has executed very well just lately by rising its financing product.”
Armstrong’s upbeat view comes from the corporate that collects Base’s sequencer charges, so it’s an celebration’s take. Haas additionally stated constructing deep liquidity and community results is the laborious half, and that’s the hurdle Base should clear to maintain its lead.
Utilizing Base for Lending and Solana for Buying and selling
A big share of Base’s deposits goes into lending apps like Morpho and Aave, the place funds are sometimes tied up for weeks or months. Solana’s ecosystem leans towards quick buying and selling and memecoins, the place cash strikes shortly by means of decentralized exchanges fairly than staying locked. Since TVL measures solely the funds held in apps at a given second, networks constructed for buying and selling can look smaller than their exercise suggests.
Solana has saved constructing for pace. Its Alpenglow upgrade, which went dwell on October 21, targets finality of about 150 milliseconds, the purpose at which a transaction can now not be reversed. That helps merchants, however it doesn’t present up in TVL.
TVL additionally strikes with the greenback worth of the tokens inside it, so Solana’s TVL shrinks when SOL and different Solana-based tokens fall. Over the previous 30 days, SOL fell 18.2%, whereas ETH dropped solely 9.7%. A part of Base’s lead would possibly subsequently come from SOL’s falling worth, even with out important withdrawals. The rankings are tight, too, with BNB Good Chain at $5.08 billion and Tron at $5.04 billion shut behind Solana.
Coinbase has not picked a aspect, both. On the identical day Base handed Solana in TVL, Coinbase listed Collector Crypt (CRYPTO:CARD), a Solana token, with CARD-USD buying and selling beginning November 7. The corporate has not dedicated Base customers or its personal steadiness sheet to purchasing or holding ETH.
Why ETH’s Value Hasn’t Adopted Base’s Deposits
Ethereum’s worth has moved in the other way. ETH trades about 54.9% beneath its $4,946 all-time excessive from August 24, 2025, and SOL is down 69.5% from its $293.31 peak on January 19, 2025. Each have fallen in 2026, with ETH down 24.9% and SOL down 28.1% yr to this point.
Some worth does stream again to ETH from Base, since customers pay fuel charges in ETH and Base pays Ethereum to report its transaction knowledge. However Coinbase retains the sequencer revenue, and lending a greenback of USDC on Base doesn’t require anybody to purchase ETH. So solely a modest share of Base’s development reaches ETH holders.
ETF flows for each cash are combined. Ethereum ETFs took in $53 million on November 4 however misplaced $365.3 million for the week. Solana ETFs misplaced $25.1 million on November 6 after three straight days with no flows.
Each cash commerce simply above their 200-day transferring averages of $2,156 for ETH and $88.98 for SOL, however beneath their 50-day averages of $2,499 and $108.16, an indication sellers have managed the previous month.
Is Ethereum Gaining Ground on Solana?
Ethereum appears to be making a comeback in DeFi deposits, however ETH’s worth doesn’t but present traders returning cash. Base’s development has given Coinbase an even bigger lending enterprise and extra sequencer charges, and it provides Ethereum’s layer-2 networks an edge over Solana. For ETH holders, although, the 9.7% drop over the previous month reveals the market isn’t paying for that utilization but.
For SOL holders, the slip seems to be pushed primarily by SOL’s 18.2% drop, and greenback rankings can’t inform worth declines from withdrawals. The take a look at is SOL’s $108.16 50-day common. If SOL climbs again above it whereas its TVL nonetheless trails Base, cash has probably shifted to Base. A lead regained on worth alone would level to cost. Our have a look at whether or not Solana could overtake Ethereum by 2028 covers the longer rivalry.
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