Layer 1 Networks Featured on Domestic Exchanges: A Comparative Analysis of Speed and Fees for Cryptocurrencies Such as Sui and Solana

What Is a Layer 1 Blockchain?

A Layer 1 blockchain is a standalone blockchain network that manages its own infrastructure, from transaction processing to smart contract execution. This foundational layer operates independently, with Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Solana serving as prime examples.

Layer 1 chains are designed with a core focus on security and decentralization, but they face significant hurdles in scalability. For instance, Ethereum has struggled with network congestion as transaction volumes rise, which has led to the development and adoption of Layer 2 solutions to improve speed and reduce fees.

Recent trends reveal strong growth for native tokens of Layer 1 projects. While top assets like BTC and ETH continue to set record highs, newer Layer 1 projects are also posting substantial gains in niche markets. When considering investment or development on Layer 1, it is critical to comprehensively evaluate its security, scalability, and ecosystem growth potential.

Layer 1 Projects on Japanese Exchanges: Key Specs Comparison Table

Below is a comparison of each project's TPS (transactions per second), gas fees (transaction costs), primary use cases, and listing status on Japanese exchanges. Use this table as a reference for investment decisions and technical evaluation.

*TPS shows both theoretical max and observed values. Gas fees are recent averages. Exchange rate: $1 ≈ ¥130.

Ethereum (ETH): Core Features and Challenges

Current TPS and Gas Fee Status

Ethereum Layer 1 mainnet processes about 15–30 TPS, slower than newer blockchains. To address this, the Ethereum community is aggressively developing and deploying Layer 2 solutions, which are greatly increasing overall throughput.

Gas fees fluctuate widely based on network congestion. During peak load, fees can reach tens of dollars per transaction, but recent data shows a median fee of about $0.61. Token swaps on DEXs often exceed $10, while NFT purchases can cost more than $17—fees vary by transaction type. Users can reduce costs by leveraging Layer 2 and optimizing transaction timing.

Initiatives for Speed and Lower Costs

Ethereum has made major network upgrades in recent years. The transition from Proof of Work (PoW) to Proof of Stake (PoS), known as "the Merge," dramatically reduced energy consumption and improved network stability.

The Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM) is the backbone of Ethereum’s technology, providing a standardized environment for smart contract execution and enabling thousands of projects to build on the platform, forming a robust ecosystem.

Scalability improvements continue with sharding and Layer 2 rollups. The recent EIP-4844 (proto-danksharding) significantly lowered Layer 2 data fees. Full sharding aims for throughput exceeding 100,000 TPS in the future.

Main Use Cases for Ethereum

Ethereum is the most broadly used blockchain platform, with key use cases including:

Decentralized Finance (DeFi): Home to the largest DeFi ecosystem, with lending, derivatives, liquidity pools, and more.

NFT Marketplaces: Leading marketplaces like OpenSea run on Ethereum, serving as the foundation for digital art and collectibles trading.

Decentralized Autonomous Organizations (DAO): Governance tokens enable community-driven management and project oversight.

Gaming and Social Platforms: Adoption is expanding in blockchain games and social media applications.

Stablecoin Payment Infrastructure: Ethereum supports major stablecoins like USDT and USDC, underpinning global payment systems.

Ethereum dominates DeFi and NFT sectors in scale and maturity. However, high gas fees have prompted user migration to Layer 2 solutions like Arbitrum and Optimism.

Future Development and Outlook

Ethereum’s roadmap follows a phased, long-term approach:

"The Surge": Major scaling implementations, including sharding, to boost throughput.

"The Verge": Verkle Trees reduce node and storage requirements.

"The Purge": Pruning historical data and unnecessary protocol complexity to lighten the network.

"The Splurge": Further improvements and optimizations.

Innovations like EigenLayer restaking technology are also in development. These advances will continue to expand and mature the Ethereum ecosystem.

Status in Japan

Ethereum (ETH) is traded on nearly all major Japanese crypto exchanges. Platforms like bitFlyer, Coincheck, and others support JPY trading, making ETH accessible even for beginners.

Domestic exchanges offer direct JPY purchasing, robust Japanese-language support, and secure trading environments supervised by the Financial Services Agency.

Users engaging with DeFi or NFT marketplaces must note that ETH is needed to pay gas fees and self-custody wallets like MetaMask require secure key management and anti-phishing precautions.

What Makes Ethereum Attractive to Investors?

Ethereum’s investment appeal centers on:

Strong Real-World Demand: ETH is essential for DeFi and NFT transactions, providing utility-driven value.

Rich Ecosystem: Thousands of DApps and token projects operate on Ethereum, supporting long-term network effects.

Regulatory Compliance and Reliability: Ethereum receives favorable regulatory treatment and is accessible to institutional investors; major financial institutions like Mitsubishi UFJ Bank plan to adopt Ethereum-compatible chains.

However, fierce competition with other blockchains means Ethereum must address scalability and cost efficiency. The spread of Layer 2 and progress in sharding are central to maintaining its competitiveness.

Solana (SOL): Core Features and Highlights

Performance (TPS) and Gas Fees

Solana is recognized for its "high-speed" and "low-cost" transaction capabilities. It consistently delivers 3,000–4,000 TPS in production, with a theoretical peak of 65,000 TPS—far outpacing conventional blockchains.

Transaction fees are remarkably low, averaging 0.00001 SOL (about $0.001–$0.002), nearly free. Recent data shows a median fee of $0.0013 (¥0.17), less than one-thousandth of Ethereum’s costs.

This enables micropayments and mass NFT minting, previously impractical on most blockchains.

Technologies Powering Fast Processing

Solana’s performance relies on several innovations:

Proof of History (PoH): Assigns cryptographic timestamps to transactions, efficiently proving order and streamlining consensus.

Tower BFT: PoS-based consensus using PoH timestamps for rapid, secure agreement.

Sealevel: Parallel smart contract execution environment, boosting throughput.

Solana’s fee market allows users to set priority fees during congestion, without sacrificing overall cost efficiency.

Main Use Cases and Focus Sectors

Solana’s speed and efficiency make it ideal for:

NFT Markets: Projects like DeGods and Okay Bears foster unique communities, enabling frequent, affordable NFT trading and minting.

Blockchain Gaming: Fast processing supports real-time games, rivaling traditional Web2 experiences.

High-Frequency Trading: Solana is critical for DEXs (Serum, Raydium) and lending protocols (Solend), where low latency is a key advantage.

Micropayments: Visa’s use of Solana for USDC payments highlights its practical utility.

Web3 Social Apps: Cost efficiency benefits platforms with high transaction volumes.

Solana Labs has also launched the "Solana Saga" smartphone, driving mobile-Web3 integration for mass adoption.

Roadmap

Solana aims for continued improvement:

Firedancer: Jump Crypto’s validator client, tested at over 1.6 million TPS, promises even greater scalability.

State Compression: Enables millions of NFTs to be issued at ultra-low cost, opening new use cases.

Ongoing Protocol Refinement: Fee market optimizations and transaction priority enhancements continue.

Partnerships with Visa, Stripe, and other financial firms position Solana for "Web2-level" adoption.

Status in Japan

Solana (SOL) is now widely traded on major Japanese crypto exchanges, improving accessibility for investors.

Some exchanges offer SOL staking, enabling holders to earn additional yield. Annual returns vary but are attractive for long-term holders.

Solana DApps and DeFi require external wallets like Phantom, which primarily provide English interfaces; users should have technical competency and English proficiency.

Investor Appeal

Solana stands out for:

Exceptional Performance and Real Demand: High TPS and low fees support actual use cases in NFTs, gaming, and DeFi.

Rapid Ecosystem Growth: NFT and gaming projects are expanding quickly, with unique communities distinct from Ethereum.

Major Financial Partnerships: Adoption by Visa signals credibility and future potential.

Risks include past network outages and criticisms of validator centralization. Recent stability and technical improvements, such as Firedancer, are mitigating concerns. Overall, Solana is a high-risk, high-reward investment, especially attractive for growth-oriented investors.

Cardano (ADA): Core Features and Highlights

Performance (TPS) and Gas Fees

Cardano’s main chain handles 10–dozens of TPS, with a theoretical max around 250 TPS. The team prioritizes stability and security over raw speed.

Layer 2 "Hydra" has shown over 1 million TPS in testing, processing transactions off-chain and recording results on-chain for future scalability.

Fees are stable, around 0.17 ADA ($0.1–$0.2), with high predictability. This stability is key for enterprise and government adoption.

Technology Design Emphasizing Stability

Cardano is built on academic rigor and phased development:

Ouroboros Consensus: A peer-reviewed PoS algorithm, generating blocks every ~20 seconds with mathematically proven security and strong decentralization.

EUTXO Model: An extension of Bitcoin’s UTXO, providing high predictability and security for smart contracts, and preventing wasted fees from failed transactions.

Plutus Smart Contract Language: Based on Haskell, supporting formal verification for secure financial apps.

Performance is gradually improving via block size increases and pipelining. Layer 2 solutions (Hydra, Milkomeda, Midnight) supplement scalability.

Main Use Cases and Focus Sectors

Cardano supports:

DeFi: Growing ecosystem with DEXs (Minswap, SundaeSwap) and lending (Aada).

NFT Marketplaces: Diverse NFT projects, including images, music, and metaverse land, benefit from stable fees and network reliability.

Societal Infrastructure: Notable for national-scale deployments, such as Ethiopia’s education project and Georgia’s identity/land registry initiatives.

Cardano is popular in Japan, supported by active NFT and blockchain communities and founder Charles Hoskinson’s close ties to Japan.

Roadmap and Future Prospects

Cardano’s five-phase roadmap:

Byron (Foundation): Complete—core network functions established.

Shelley (Decentralization): Complete—staking and validator decentralization.

Goguen (Smart Contracts): Complete—Plutus smart contracts enabled.

Basho (Scaling): Ongoing—network performance and scalability improvements.

Voltaire (Governance): Upcoming—decentralized governance and autonomous treasury.

Key points ahead:

Hydra Rollout: Full deployment will dramatically scale throughput.

Voltaire Completion: Decentralized governance will empower community-led network direction.

Midnight Sidechain: Privacy-focused sidechain for compliance-sensitive applications.

Completion of these stages will ensure Cardano’s long-term sustainability as a fully decentralized, community-driven network.

Status in Japan

Cardano (ADA) is traded on most major Japanese exchanges, with high liquidity and easy access. Some platforms offer staking, providing several percent annual yield, and Cardano staking allows flexible withdrawals.

Cardano-specific DApps and DeFi protocols require dedicated wallets (Nami, Lace, Eternl), which support the EUTXO model and may need specialized knowledge. Increasing resources and tools are reducing barriers for new users.

Investor Appeal

Cardano’s strengths include:

Robustness and Security: Academically validated protocols with minimal security incidents, making it a reliable store of value.

Community-Driven Decentralization: Over 3,000 stake pools run Cardano’s staking system, enabling easy participation in staking and governance.

Societal Implementation: Partnerships with Ethiopian and Georgian governments highlight Cardano’s practical utility.

Investors should note Cardano’s cautious development pace, which can mean slower feature deployment and milder short-term price swings. DeFi and NFT sectors remain smaller versus Ethereum and Solana.

Cardano is best suited for long-term investment, backed by technical strength, societal impact initiatives, and strong community support.

Avalanche (AVAX): Core Features and Highlights

Performance (TPS) and Gas Fees

Avalanche combines high performance and flexibility, with a base layer capable of roughly 4,500 TPS and 1–2 second transaction finality.

Network load is typically well below capacity, with peak performance over 400 TPS. Avalanche is built to scale for future demand.

Transaction fees are extremely low (0.0005–0.005 AVAX per transaction, just a few yen), providing a major competitive edge. An upcoming upgrade (ACP-125) is expected to reduce fees by 96%.

All transaction fees are burned, reducing AVAX supply as usage grows and increasing scarcity for holders.

Technologies Behind Speed and Low Costs

Avalanche’s advantages stem from:

Avalanche Consensus: Probabilistic agreement for fast, efficient finality, without requiring full participation by all nodes.

Multi-Chain Structure: Three specialized chains:

• X-Chain: Asset creation and exchange
• C-Chain: EVM-compatible smart contracts
• P-Chain: Validator management and subnet coordination

This structure ensures efficient load balancing.

Subnets: Custom blockchains with independent validators, governance, and VMs, ideal for enterprise and government use cases requiring both public security and private customization.

Main Use Cases and Focus Sectors

Avalanche powers:

DeFi: Major projects include Trader Joe (DEX), Benqi (lending and liquid staking), and the Avalanche Rush incentive program.

NFT & Gaming: Low fees and fast processing for NFT marketplaces (Kalao) and games (Crabada).

Enterprise Subnets: Adoption by Alibaba Cloud, Deloitte, and SK Planet demonstrates Avalanche’s appeal beyond crypto, especially in business and government sectors.

Development Plans and Roadmap

Avalanche is advancing with:

Avalanche Warp Messaging (AWM): Seamless cross-subnet messaging and token transfers, boosting interoperability for complex applications.

Evergreen Subnets: Standardized private blockchains for enterprises, requiring minimal technical expertise.

Hyper SDK: A toolkit for rapid development of high-performance subnets customized for specific use cases.

Ongoing efforts focus on regulatory compliance and financial sector partnerships to drive mainstream adoption.

Status in Japan

AVAX is now available on multiple major Japanese exchanges, improving access for investors. Some platforms offer direct AVAX/JPY trading and staking services (approx. 7.6% annual yield, variable).

Advanced features like subnet creation and cross-chain transfers require dedicated wallets (Avalanche Wallet), but basic AVAX trading can be handled with exchange accounts.

Investor Appeal

Avalanche offers:

Scalability and Flexibility: High throughput (4,500 TPS) and subnet-driven expansion ensure long-term scalability.

Fee-Burn Tokenomics: Burning transaction fees increases AVAX scarcity, directly benefiting holders.

Enterprise Adoption: Partnerships with major corporations and governments validate Avalanche’s reliability and utility.

Challenges include competition with Ethereum, Solana, and other DeFi leaders, and the complexity of subnet functionality, which may hinder adoption. Improving user experience and education will be critical for ecosystem growth.

Avalanche is a strong medium- to long-term investment, particularly for those interested in enterprise blockchain solutions.

Sui (SUI): Core Features and Highlights

Performance (TPS) and Gas Fees

Sui is an ultra-fast blockchain platform with theoretical throughput up to 300,000 TPS, far exceeding most competitors. In production, Sui handles thousands to tens of thousands of TPS, making it ideal for large-scale apps and real-time gaming.

Transaction fees are consistently low ($0.001–$0.002, ¥0.1–¥0.3), supporting economical microtransactions and frequent on-chain operations.

Sui features "storage rebates," refunding a portion of fees when on-chain data is deleted, optimizing long-term storage costs.

Technologies for Speed and Cost Efficiency

Sui’s innovations include:

Move Language: Smart contracts in Move, originally designed for Meta’s Diem, provide secure asset management.

Move’s "resource" concept prevents double spending and unauthorized copying, bolstering smart contract security.

Object-Centric Model: All data is represented as objects with independent ownership, allowing parallel processing without consensus for unrelated transactions and dramatically increasing throughput.

Narwhal + Bullshark Consensus: Narwhal handles data distribution and mempool management, while Bullshark achieves fast consensus with minimal communication overhead.

Horizontal Scalability: Adding more powerful validator hardware linearly increases network capacity, allowing Sui to scale with future demand.

Main Use Cases and Focus Sectors

Sui excels in:

Blockchain Gaming & Dynamic NFTs: Sui enables on-chain dynamic asset management, allowing NFT and game item properties to be updated directly on the blockchain. For example, game character progression and equipment upgrades are recorded on-chain, revolutionizing play-to-earn and metaverse applications. Netmarble’s "Grand Cross: Metaworld" is a flagship project leveraging Sui’s dynamic NFT capabilities.

High-Frequency DeFi Trading: Protocols like DeepBook (order book DEX) and Turbos Finance (AMM DEX) deliver fast execution and low fees, overcoming legacy DEX limitations.

Supply Chain Management: Sui’s object model supports real-time tracking of physical goods throughout production and distribution.

Roadmap

Sui, still early in its lifecycle, is focused on:

Protocol Optimization: Improving consensus and transaction processing; exploring Layer 2 integrations like ZK rollups for scalability.

DeFi Ecosystem Expansion: Rapid growth in DeFi protocols, with AMMs, lending, and derivatives on the horizon.

Major Gaming Partnerships: Collaborations with Netmarble and gumi are strengthening Sui’s position in blockchain gaming.

AI Integration: The team is exploring AI-powered DApps and on-chain AI inference as new use cases.

Sui is accelerating ecosystem growth, backed by strong VC funding and a team of ex-Meta Diem core engineers.

Status in Japan

Sui (SUI) is now traded on several Japanese exchanges, providing easy access for domestic users. Full ecosystem participation (DApps, DeFi) requires dedicated wallets:

• Sui Wallet: Official browser extension wallet
• Ethos Wallet: User-friendly third-party wallet

These wallets primarily offer English interfaces, so technical knowledge and English proficiency are recommended for advanced use.

Investor Appeal

Sui’s appeal includes:

Top-Tier Performance: Industry-leading scalability (up to 300,000 TPS) positions Sui for mass adoption.

Strong Funding and Backers: Raised hundreds of millions from major VCs and exchanges, supporting long-term growth.

Rapid Ecosystem Growth: Surpassing $500 million TVL within six months of mainnet launch reflects strong developer and user interest.

Risks include:

Intense Competition: Direct rivalry with Aptos and other Move-based chains.

Token Distribution: Large allocations to team and investors may create selling pressure at unlocks.

Early-Stage Risks: Long-term stability and governance remain untested.

Sui is a high-risk, high-reward play with explosive growth potential, especially for investors interested in blockchain gaming and dynamic NFTs. Ongoing monitoring of project progress and ecosystem expansion is essential for informed investment decisions.

Aptos (APT): Core Features and Highlights

Performance (TPS) and Gas Fees

Aptos is a high-performance blockchain platform with measured throughput of 13,300 TPS, exceeding most competitors. Block intervals are about 0.5 seconds, with sub-second finality, ideal for real-time and high-frequency DeFi applications.

Transaction fees are extremely low (average 0.0005 APT, less than $0.01), enabling frequent microtransactions and seamless network use.

Technologies for Speed and Cost Efficiency

Aptos leverages:

Block-STM Engine: Parallel execution engine that processes independent transactions simultaneously via "optimistic parallel execution," checking for and resolving conflicts only when necessary, maximizing throughput.

Enhanced HotStuff Consensus: Improvements via "Quorum Store" separate transaction propagation from consensus, accelerating block approval and increasing stability.

Move Language (AptosVM): Move smart contracts, with resource-oriented safety and formal verification, run on AptosVM.

Aptos matches Solana’s performance with high stability.

Main Use Cases and Focus Sectors

Aptos focuses on:

Finance and Payments: Partnerships with major financial institutions (e.g., Brevan Howard) and payment infrastructure initiatives in Asia, including Japan.

Gaming and Media: Collaborations with Korean game developers and large-scale on-chain processing in gaming projects.

Social and Entertainment: Integration with everyday apps like Telegram and TikTok, and partnerships with entertainment brands (NBC Universal, Lotte).

Extensive Web2 collaborations accelerate mainstream blockchain adoption.

Roadmap and Future Prospects

Key directions include:

Ongoing Protocol Optimization: Further enhancement of parallelism and load balancing.

Cross-Chain Integration: Improved bridges with Ethereum, Solana, and others via LayerZero and similar technologies.

APT Staking & Governance: On-chain voting systems for community-led governance.

Asian Market Investment: Active expansion in Japan and Korea via partnerships, developer communities, and regulatory cooperation.

Status in Japan

Aptos (APT) is now available on several Japanese exchanges, improving accessibility for investors. Current trading is often via BTC or ETH, but direct JPY markets are expected soon.

Using Aptos DApps and DeFi requires dedicated wallets:

• Martian Wallet: User-friendly interface
• Petra Wallet: Officially recommended wallet
• Blocto Wallet: Multi-chain support

Multi-chain wallet adoption is improving usability.

Investor Appeal

Aptos stands out for:

Expert Diem (Libra) Team: Development led by ex-Meta Diem core members, bringing advanced expertise and reliability.

Concrete Financial and Web2 Partnerships: Numerous real-world business collaborations validate Aptos’s practical utility.

Competitive Position in Move Ecosystem: Aptos leverages Move’s strengths, especially in finance and payments.

Risks include concentrated token distribution and regulatory developments.