Solana & Hyperliquid: The 2025 Revenue Kings as Blockchain Utility Explodes

Forget the hype cycles—2025's blockchain winners are cashing in on real-world use. Solana and Hyperliquid aren't just surviving; they're printing money as developer activity and user adoption hit escape velocity.

The Engine Room: What's Driving the Surge

It's not speculation fueling these revenue charts. It's utility. Think high-frequency decentralized finance, institutional-grade derivatives, and consumer apps that don't feel like a science experiment. Networks that cut transaction costs and bypass legacy bottlenecks are seeing their metrics—and their treasury balances—go vertical.

The Bottom Line for Builders and Believers

This isn't a fluke. Revenue dominance signals where the smart capital and developer talent are flowing. While some chains are still paying influencers to shill memecoins, these platforms are building the financial infrastructure for what comes next. The cynical take? Wall Street will be 'surprised' by this growth right before they try to buy it all up at a premium.

Solana Emerges as the Dominant All-Purpose Blockchain

Solana has established itself as the foremost general-purpose blockchain, surpassing Base, which was previously centered around cost-efficient applications and seamless interactions on-chain. Currently, Base takes the seventh spot, earning $76.4 million every year. Recent statistics from CryptoRank highlighted a significant shift in the ecosystem, as legacy chains declined and applications moved to new destinations.

Top 10 Chains By Revenue in 2025

🥇 @solana – $1.3B
🥈 @HyperliquidX – $816M
🥉 @trondao – $608M

4. #Ethereum – $524M
5. @BNBCHAIN – $257M
6. @edgeX_exchange – $169M
7. @base – $76.4M
8. @axelar – $56.9M
9. @bittensor – $33.4M
10. @Optimism – $21.6M pic.twitter.com/6NwYRYllTS

Even ethereum and BNB Chain fell to fourth and fifth places, although their revenue figures were high. Ethereum registered a revenue of $524 million every year, whereas BNB Chain’s figure was $257 million. The year 2025 emerged as a tipping point for the crypto industry, as it transitioned from hype-based adoption to mainstream products with a focus on generating revenue.

The transition produced more stable and predictable app revenues, revealing clear winners among high-activity chains. The best-performing chains in such a scenario hinged on genuine app adoption and did not include airdrop farming and rewards. On Solana, apps transformed into infrastructure and did not rely on novel experimentation or points-based systems.

Former leaders Avalanche, Filecoin, and TON could not get back into the top ten revenue chart. However, there is an indication of a trend of movement to a new set of L1 and L2 platforms that have been designed to address various needs. EdgeX got a position based on its native exchange, while Axelar, Bittensor, and Optimism got their spots because of an outstanding app or two.

Hyperliquid Caps Its Most Active Year

Hyperliquid completed its active year as a prominent player in the brand-new market of decentralized perpetual futures, even as rival firms entered the market.

Alongside Solana, Hyperliquid ranked among the top revenue-generating chains in 2025. In its maiden year as a major player in the world of perpetual futures DEX, the network emerged as the second-largest chain based on app revenue. 

Using the Hyperscreener data, the network saw the addition of deposits amounting to $3.87 billion, along with over 609,000 new users. The HyperCore chain raked in more than $908 million as yearly revenue.

Roughly $848 million was generated from perpetual futures trading alone. Additionally, $5.7 million in gas fees from the top 100 whales was channeled into the protocol’s reserve. As the crypto market evolved, Hyperliquid was unique in providing a steady income.

Additionally, developers in the Hyperliquid ecosystem earned more than $46 million in revenues. The revenues also came from ticker auctions, including fees amounting to almost $1 million from the GOD ticker.