Ethereum's TPS skyrockets to 24,192! Lighter outperforms Solana, achieving 200 times more scalability.

Ethereum ecosystem hits new record for transactions per second, now including high-speed Ethereum Layer 2 Lighter. Growthepie data shows that in the past 24 hours, there was a moment when 24,192 transactions were processed in just one second — the highest ever. Transactions on Lighter even far surpass those on the Base Chain.

How Lighter Boosts Ethereum TPS by 200 Times

(Source: X)

Since its launch last month, transaction activity on Ethereum Layer 2 Lighter has exploded, with Ethereum’s TPS reaching a record 24,192. This figure includes transactions from the decentralized perpetual futures platform Lighter. The significance isn’t just the absolute number but how it compares to Ethereum’s mainnet. The mainnet handles only about 15-30 TPS, so Lighter’s 24,192 TPS represents roughly an 800 to 1,600-fold increase in performance.

Lighter’s transaction speed even far exceeds that of the Base Chain, which handles about 4,000 TPS daily and peaks at around 100-200 TPS. This speed advantage is largely due to Lighter’s extensive use of zero-knowledge (ZK) proof technology. ZK tech allows bundling hundreds or thousands of transactions into a single proof, which is then verified on the Ethereum mainnet, greatly reducing resource consumption and boosting throughput.

Ryan Sean Adams credits this rise to Lighter and its heavy use of ZK proofs. “ZK is just beginning to impact Ethereum Layer 2,” he said, telling his 272,000 followers on X that in the coming months, TPS could reach 100,000, eventually hitting 1 million. While this prediction is ambitious, it’s not impossible. As ZK tech continues to improve and more ZK Rollups come online, Ethereum’s total TPS could grow exponentially.

Ethereum’s upcoming Pectra and Dencun upgrades introduce features to increase Layer 2 transaction throughput. Dencun adds EIP-4844 (Proto-Danksharding), providing a cheaper data availability layer for Rollups. Pectra further optimizes validator and staking mechanisms. These foundational upgrades set the stage for explosive growth in Layer 2 solutions like Lighter.

Ethereum Scaling Milestones

• Mainnet: 15-30 TPS (baseline)
• Base Chain: 100-200 TPS (mainstream Layer 2)
• Lighter: 4,000 TPS daily, up to 24,192 TPS at peak
• Future Goals: 100,000 TPS by late 2025, 1,000,000 TPS long-term

Vitalik Buterin Endorsement and Community Excitement

Ethereum enthusiasts are thrilled about this new milestone, which highlights a key area of the network that, along with decentralization and security, garners attention. “Ethereum is scaling,” co-founder Vitalik Buterin and others posted on X Wednesday, after Ethereum set a new TPS record, continuing to break records over the following hours. Vitalik’s endorsement provides a significant morale boost for the community.

This TPS record is a major milestone because scaling has long been Ethereum’s biggest challenge. For years, Ethereum faced criticism for low TPS and high gas fees, making it hard to support large-scale applications. Competitors like Solana, with theoretically 65,000 TPS, have gained market share. The emergence of Lighter proves that Ethereum can achieve high performance through Layer 2 solutions while maintaining decentralization and security.

This breakthrough rekindles confidence among Ethereum maximalists. Over recent months, Ethereum’s price weakness and declining ecosystem activity had led to skepticism. The TPS record supports the “Rollup-Centric” roadmap: instead of sacrificing decentralization to improve mainnet performance, Ethereum can achieve unlimited scaling via Layer 2.

However, there’s also skepticism. Rezso Schmiedt, founding partner of ₿RRR Capital, asks where the additional value growth for Ethereum’s mainnet will come from. “Yes, transaction volume has increased. But where does the value come from? L2 transactions pay fees, not ETH. This remains an unresolved issue,” he notes. This highlights a core challenge in Ethereum’s Layer 2 strategy.

Frequent Lighter Outages and Similarities to Early Solana

(Source: X)

Despite its speed, Lighter has experienced multiple network outages since October 1, reminiscent of early Solana. The team compensated nearly 3,900 wallets with $774,872 USDC after a notable outage on October 28.

These frequent outages raise concerns about Lighter’s stability. High TPS is crucial, but if the network often goes down, users and developers will lose trust. Solana, during 2021-2022, suffered multiple long outages, damaging its reputation until stability improved in 2023. Lighter appears to be repeating this pattern.

The $774,872 compensation shows the team’s accountability but also underscores the severity of outages. Such large-scale compensation indicates many users were affected—failed transactions, inaccessible funds, or unexecuted liquidations. For perpetual futures platforms, stability is more critical than speed; outages during volatile markets can cause huge losses.

The similarities to Solana’s early issues serve as both warning and hope. Solana eventually resolved stability problems through ongoing technical improvements, proving high performance and stability can coexist. If Lighter learns from Solana’s experience and iterates quickly, it could improve stability while maintaining high TPS. Success depends on the team’s technical capacity and resources.

Layer 2 Value Capture Controversy and Ethereum Mainnet Challenges

While Layer 2 solutions boost overall scalability, concerns remain that their rise diminishes Ethereum’s dominance in key metrics like decentralized transaction volume and fee generation. Rezso Schmiedt asks, “Yes, transaction volume increased. But where does the value come from? L2 transactions pay fees, not ETH. This remains unresolved.”

This dilemma is a fundamental challenge of Ethereum’s Rollup-Centric roadmap. As most transactions move to Layer 2, user fees flow to Layer 2 operators rather than Ethereum validators and stakers. While Layer 2s need to submit periodic data and proofs to the mainnet for small fees, these are far less than what would be generated if all transactions occurred on the mainnet.

Most of the Ethereum community still sees value in Layer 2; however, aligning incentives—such as through fee sharing, MEV distribution, and protocol integration—is crucial for sustainable value flow back to Ethereum. Proposed solutions include: Layer 2 paying higher fees to the mainnet, distributing MEV between mainnet and Layer 2, and requiring Layer 2s to stake ETH as security deposits.

The ultimate resolution of this debate will determine Ethereum’s long-term value capture. If Layer 2s develop independently without returning value to the mainnet, ETH’s investment appeal could weaken. Conversely, establishing effective value recapture mechanisms could boost ETH demand and value, creating a positive feedback loop. While the TPS record is exciting, how this technology translates into ETH’s value growth remains a key question for the community.