Ethereum just notched its busiest day ever, and did it without the usual price tag.

The network processed nearly 2.8 million transactions on Friday, the most in its history. And unlike past surges, users didn’t get hit with steep fees. Gas costs have dropped to as low as $0.15 on average, and even lower on layer 2s, a dramatic shift for a network long plagued by congestion and expense.

This story is an excerpt from the Unchained Daily newsletter.

The spike comes weeks after Ethereum’s Fusaka upgrade, which expanded the network’s capacity for storing and handling data, especially for layer 2 rollups. Combined with a boost in the block gas limit late last year, Ethereum is now handling record usage with smoother throughput.

Much of the new activity is being driven by stablecoins, now making up roughly 40% of all transactions, according to Standard Chartered. Meanwhile, staking has remained steady, with over 36 million ETH locked and no exit queue in sight, a sign of confidence among validators.

After years of scaling promises, Ethereum may finally be delivering.