The total value locked (TVL) of Ethereum Layer 2 networks has reached a historical record of $47 billion.

According to data posted by L2BEAT, the current TVL of all canonically bridged, externally bridged, and natively minted tokens on Ethereum Layer 2 networks is $47.45 billion, setting a new all-time high.

Breaking Down the Numbers

Breaking down by network, Arbitrum One leads the ranking with a TVL of $19.3 billion. OP Mainnet comes in second with $7.88 billion, and Base is ranked third with $6.94 billion in TVL.

Other blockchains with a TVL exceeding $1 billion include Blast, Mantle, Linea, and Starknet. L2BEAT indicated that the total value locked of all L2s has increased by 17.39% in the past seven days.

Driving the Surge

The bullish trend was primarily motivated by the recent approval of spot Ethereum exchange-traded funds (ETFs) by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

On May 23, the SEC approved the Ethereum ETF applications filed by eight issuers. This marks the second spot digital asset ETF in the country, following the spot Bitcoin ETFs approved in January.

The issuers included BlackRock, Fidelity, Grayscale, Bitwise, VanEck, Ark, Invesco Galaxy, and Franklin Templeton. They are submitting S-1 forms, and analysts expect the launch within weeks.

"The total value locked of all L2s has increased by 17.39% in the past seven days," stated L2BEAT.

Future Upgrades

In addition, the Ethereum core developers have announced that Pectra, the next major upgrade of the Ethereum network, will be launched in the first quarter of 2025.

The community chose Q1 2025 to avoid debugging during Devcon and the holiday season. This schedule would allow the contributors to test the upgrade and handle the transition extensively.

Technical Enhancements

The upgrade for the consensus client "CL" will include PeerDAS to increase the network's data availability. For the execution client "EL," Pectra will include EOF, replace EIP3074 with EIP7702, and patch EIP2935.

These enhancements aim to make the Ethereum network more robust and efficient, cementing its position as a leading blockchain platform.

The surge in TVL and upcoming network upgrades highlight Ethereum's growing influence in the blockchain space.

With the SEC's recent approval of Ethereum ETFs and the imminent Pectra upgrade, Ethereum Layer 2 networks are poised for even greater heights.