- Ethereum gas fees have hit record highs in the past few weeks.
- Meme coin mania led by PEPE has been the main culprit for high gas fees.
- The community joked about being priced out of Ethereum.
Just a few weeks ago the crypto industry seemed to be dead with little onchain activity compared to the bull market of 2020/2021.
However, the recent meme coin mania that seemingly came out of nowhere changed the status quo: Crypto activity picked up, especially on Ethereum where gas fees increased to record levels.
Ethereum Hits Record Gas Fees Amid PEPE Mania
The Ethereum blockchain has become unusable, at least to the majority of people trying to use it. The gas fees have gotten so high during the ongoing meme coin PEPE mania that some users have become priced out.
Over the past few weeks, amid the PEPE hysteria, the average Ethereum gas price went to levels not seen since May 2022. Since PEPE launched on April 18, the average gas price has been 74 gwei. On May 5, the average gas price hit 155 gwei, according to data from Etherscan.
Some users paid hundreds of dollars for a single transaction. One user even paid 64 ETH in gas fees for a single transaction, which is equivalent to $120,000.
PEPE has since gone down 60% in the past few days. However, gas is still high and is currently fluctuating between 145-190 gwei while PEPE has dumped 60% in the past few days.
Community Reacts to High Ethereum Gas Fees
The crypto community on Twitter reacted to the astronomical gas fees on Ethereum. One user cried for help about paying $100 in gas fees for a $10 purchase.
Another one joked and indicated that the only way to pay the high Ethereum gas fees is by selling their left kidney.
A Cardano community member mocked the high Ethereum fees and sarcastically asked whether Ethereum users have heard of Cardano, a blockchain with lower fees.
On the Flipside
- There lies a paradox in the saying that “no one is using Ethereum because the gas fees are so high.” Gas fees are high precisely because there’s an increased demand for Ethereum block space.
Why You Should Care
High gas fees on Ethereum indicate higher activity on the network. However, a lot of users get priced out of using Ethereum when gas prices are high. At the same time, there are multiple Ethereum layer 2 solutions that are working towards scaling Ethereum and eliminating high gas fees.
Read more about PEPE dumping in the past few days:
Meme Coin PEPE Dumps 42% as Whales Continue to Exit
Read more about Lido setting the date for st ETH withdrawals:
