Ether Surges 45% in May, Outperforming DeFi Market and Bitcoin as It Challenges Layer-1 Rivals
Ether (ETH) has gained significant ground this month, rising 45% and outpacing both the decentralized finance (DeFi) sector and Bitcoin, which gained 21% and 13% respectively, according to DefiLlama.
The recent rally is fueled by strong institutional interest, including record inflows into spot ETH ETFs, reversing earlier weakness experienced in 2025.
ETH began the year trading near $3,340 but plunged to $1,472 by early April amid global uncertainty tied to U.S. tariff concerns. Meanwhile, competing layer-1 blockchains like Solana briefly took center stage, bolstered by a surge in memecoin activity.
However, as detailed by CoinDesk analyst Omkar Godbole, Ether has now broken an 18-month downtrend against Solana and is reasserting itself in the DeFi space.
Yield-driven demand is helping power this rebound. TVL in Ethereum restaking protocols such as EigenLayer and Ether.fi has increased between 41% and 48% this month. Binance’s staked Ether product saw a 63% jump in TVL as well.
By contrast, Solana’s DeFi ecosystem has shown slower growth, with Jupiter and Kamino rising just 7% and 9%, and Marinade’s liquid staking up 29%.
Ether’s strong recovery signals renewed institutional confidence and robust growth in its DeFi ecosystem, highlighting its resilience amid increasing competition in the layer-1 blockchain landscape.
