According to the "January 2025 Market Insights" report released by Binance Research, the crypto market capitalization reached a historic high of $3.91 trillion in December 2024, driven by regulatory optimism, institutional adoption, and Bitcoin reaching a new all-time high ($108,000). However, as the Federal Reserve reduced its 2025 rate cut plan from four to two, the market experienced a correction at the end of December, with a market cap decline of over $0.5 trillion.
Bitcoin's market value grew by approximately 123.4% throughout the year, making it the world's seventh-largest asset, surpassing Saudi Aramco and silver, and only trailing Nvidia's performance. The key drivers include the approval of spot ETFs, Bitcoin halving, changes in monetary policy, and more supportive crypto regulations.
Additionally, Ethena's USDe market capitalization has reached $5.9 billion, surpassing DAI to become the third-largest stablecoin, thanks to its high yield and use as collateral on Aave. Decentralized spot and perpetual contract trading volumes reached historic highs of $326 billion and $356 billion, respectively, in December, while decentralized perpetual trading volume grew over 370% annually, primarily driven by Hyperliquid.
The DeFi sector's Total Value Locked (TVL) also reached a new high, with lending protocols and liquid staking protocols reaching $55 billion and $71 billion, respectively. AI agents are emerging as a new hot topic in the crypto space, with their token market capitalization reaching billions of dollars and an average daily exposure of around 100,000, including representative projects like Virtuals, Eliza framework by a16z, and individual agents like aixbt.
