An anonymous Ethereum user recently paid a staggering 288 ETH in transaction fees, amounting to over $700,000, according to blockchain tracker Whale Alert.
What makes this case even more unusual is that the transaction itself transferred 0 ETH to the recipient, meaning the entire amount was spent solely on gas fees.
High transaction fees typically occur during periods of network congestion or market volatility, but Ethereum’s gas fees have remained relatively low in 2024, largely due to the shift of activity to Layer 2 networks following the Dencun upgrade in March. This upgrade significantly reduced gas costs and made fees more predictable, thanks to the updated altcoin structure introduced with EIP-1559 in 2021.
While it remains unclear why the user paid such an excessive fee for a zero-value transaction, speculation has arisen about whether it was a mistake or intentional misuse.
According to blockchain expert MevRefund, there is a possibility that the transaction was the result of a hacking attempt, where the attacker deliberately burned stolen ETH by paying an inflated fee.
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