Author: Binance Research
Compiled by: TechFlow
This content discusses the key developments in Web3 in November 2024, outlining the current state of the ecosystem. Before previewing the major events to watch for in December 2024, we analyze the performance of the cryptocurrency, DeFi, and NFT markets.
Cryptocurrency Market Performance in November 2024
In November 2024, the cryptocurrency market reached unprecedented heights, with the total market capitalization soaring to a record $3.47 trillion. This growth was driven by a significant increase in Bitcoin to over $100,000 and substantial institutional participation, as evidenced by over $6.5 billion in inflows to spot ETFs over the past seven weeks. The Federal Reserve's decision to cut interest rates to 4.5%-4.75% on November 7th boosted confidence in risk assets, while the resignation of SEC Chairman Gary Gensler fueled speculation of regulatory reforms that could benefit digital assets.
Spot ETFs for BTC and ETH led the gains, breaking inflow records with net inflows of over $30 billion and $577 million, respectively. BlackRock's iShares Bitcoin Trust and Grayscale's Ether ETF emerged as market leaders, highlighting institutional interest in cryptocurrencies.
Altcoins also experienced a resurgence, with the CoinMarketCap Altcoin Season Index climbing from 27 to 70, and the total market capitalization increasing by $470 billion. Driven by explosive DEX activity exceeding $120 billion, Solana's daily fees surpassed Ethereum, although controversies dampened the trading frenzy around memecoins. Ethereum regained its dominance in stablecoin liquidity, overtaking Tron as the leading USDT network, with its supply growing 31.4% to $61.8 billion.
The monthly cryptocurrency market capitalization growth was 39.9% in November.
Source: CoinGecko as of November 30, 2024
Monthly price performance of the top 10 tokens by market capitalization
Source: CoinMarketCap as of November 30, 2024
In November 2024, XRP led the cryptocurrency market with an astonishing 362.3% gain, driven by the resignation of SEC Chairman Gary Gensler and increased optimism about Ripple's regulatory prospects. The filing of a WisdomTree XRP exchange-traded product (ETP) further bolstered investor confidence.
ADA closely followed, surging 216%, thanks to the Glacier Airdrop distributing $NIGHT tokens to ADA holders and Cardano's collaboration with BitcoinOS to leverage Bitcoin's liquidity. Speculation about Charles Hoskinson's discussions with the Trump administration also added momentum to ADA.
Propelled by Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy's "Department of Government Efficiency" (DOGE) initiative, DOGE rose 160.4%, further fueled by rumors of integration with social media platforms. Buoyed by regulatory optimism and growing memecoin enthusiasm, SHIB also performed well, increasing by 70.7%.
Supported by institutional capital inflows, the Federal Reserve's rate cut, and the adoption of scalability-enhancing Layer 2 solutions, ETH rose 45.1%. Bitcoin gained 36.9%, driven by strong ETF inflows averaging $180 million per week and optimism about regulatory changes following the U.S. presidential election. TON (+33.3%), TRX (+24.7%), and BNB (+10.8%) achieved more moderate gains, also benefiting from regulatory optimism and specific platform developments, with BNB's growth linked to the success of its BNB Greenfield initiative, which attracted large projects like Limewire.
Decentralized Finance (DeFi)
In November 2024, the Total Value Locked (TVL) in DeFi surged 33.7%, reflecting sustained on-chain momentum and higher expectations for regulatory clarity. Solana, Base, and Sui led the charge, with TVL growth rates of 43.4%, 32.9%, and 54.0%, respectively. Driven by institutional and retail capital inflows, Solana's TVL reached a new high of $8.8 billion. Key contributors included liquid staking protocols like Jito, Sanctum, and Binance Staked Sol (BNSOL), as well as liquidity providers Drift and Raydium, supporting the network's growing on-chain transaction volumes. The rise of Real-World Assets (RWA) further fueled the growth, with Chainlink's infrastructure connecting blockchain networks to real-world data, leading to a 14,450% surge in developer activity.
Due to strong user participation in lending markets, Base's DeFi TVL climbed to $3.4 billion, growing 33.4%. Benefiting from seamless integration with Base and Arbitrum, Uniswap's TVL soared 55.4%, solidifying its dominance in liquidity provision. The network also set a record of over 9.2 million daily transactions, highlighting its scalability. Meanwhile, driven by robust capital rotation on the Sui chain, Sui's TVL reached a record $160 million. Standout protocols include Suilend, with a TVL growth of 86.5%, as well as Navi Protocol, Cetus AMM, and Scallop Lend, indicating the network's growing appeal for DeFi innovation.
TVL share of top blockchains
Source: DeFiLlama as of November 30, 2024
NFTs
Monthly NFT Trading Volume
In November, the total NFT sales volume surged 57.6%, with ETH-based NFTs exceeding $0.5 billion. However, the number of unique buyers and sellers declined by 24.7%, indicating a consolidation of fewer, higher-value transactions. Oversaturation persists, with approximately 98% of this year's NFT projects yet to become profitable, highlighting challenges in profitability and sustained market participation. Ethereum-based collections had mixed results, with CryptoPunks leading with a 141.4% increase, while Doodles rebounded impressively with a 584.0% gain. Innovative projects like Courtyard.io maintained steady activity, averaging 3,500 daily sales.
Driven by enthusiasm for Ordinals and the BRC-20 protocol, Bitcoin NFT trading volume grew by 220%, with leading collections like ArtBlock and NodeMonkes seeing significant growth. Other chains, including Solana (+19.3%), Polygon (+28.6%), and BNB Chain (+48.1%), also reported notable increases. These trends reflect the broader optimism in the cryptocurrency market, although challenges in maintaining widespread participation and profitability persist.
Upcoming Events and Token Unlocks
To help users stay up-to-date with the latest Web3 news, the Binance Research team has summarized the major events and token unlocks for the next month. Keep a close eye on the upcoming developments in the blockchain space.
Source: Itez, Binance Research
Largest token unlocks by USD value
Source: CryptoRank, Binance Research
