Gas Fees on the Ethereum Blockchain: From Foundations to Derivatives Valuations

Abstract

The gas fee, paid for inclusion in the blockchain, is analyzed in two parts. First, we consider how effort in terms of resources required to process and store a transaction turns into a gas limit, which, through a fee, comprised of the base and priority fee in the current version of Ethereum, is converted into the cost paid by the user. We hew closely to the Ethereum protocol to simplify the analysis and to constrain the design choices when considering multidimensional gas. Second, we assume that the gas price is given deus ex machina by a fractional Ornstein-Uhlenbeck process and evaluate various derivatives. These contracts can, for example, mitigate gas cost volatility. The ability to price and trade forwards besides the existing spot inclusion into the blockchain could be beneficial.