Economic Throughput

Economic throughput measures the total value of transactions or economic activity processed by a protocol or network over a specific period. It is a key indicator of the actual utility and demand for the system's services.

High economic throughput suggests that the protocol is effectively serving its purpose, whether that is facilitating trades, enabling lending, or supporting derivative contracts. In the context of tokenomics, it is often linked to the value accrual of the protocol's native token.

Analysts use this metric to differentiate between speculative hype and genuine adoption. A growing economic throughput is a positive sign for the long-term viability of a decentralized project.