Ethereum Name Service has scrapped plans to launch its own layer-2 network, opting instead to deploy its ENSv2 upgrade directly on Ethereum as base-layer scaling accelerates.
The decision follows a roughly 99% decline in ENS registration gas fees over the past year, driven by recent Ethereum upgrades that have significantly expanded network capacity.
“Put simply: Ethereum L1 is scaling, and it's scaling faster than almost anyone predicted two years ago,”
Said ENS lead developer, Nick Johnson, citing higher gas limits after the Fusaka upgrade.
ENS first unveiled its proposed Namechain L2 in November 2024, when rollups were widely viewed as the primary path to lower costs and improved user experience.
Johnson said the context has since changed, making it viable to build directly on layer 1 while still benefiting from interoperability with existing L2 ecosystems.
With Namechain abandoned, ENS will focus engineering efforts on ENSv2 features, including a new registry architecture, improved ownership models and better handling of name expiration.
The project said staying on Ethereum L1 does not rule out L2 integrations, as ENSv2 is designed to abstract cross-chain complexity and remain compatible with rollups.
At the time of reporting, Ethereum price was $2,024.33.