Author: Tanay Ved Source: Coin Metrics Translation: Shan Oppa, Golden Finance

2024 is coming to an end , a year that stands in stark contrast to the crypto winter of 2022, we wanted to pause and reflect on what has been an extraordinary year for the cryptocurrency industry.

2024 can be called the most influential year in the history of cryptocurrency in many aspects, starting with the launch of the Bitcoin ETF and ending successfully with Bitcoin exceeding $100,000 after the election.

In this article, we revisit the major developments shaping the digital asset industry in 2024 through a data-driven lens.

Buoyed by the explosive success of the Bitcoin ETF in January, the cryptocurrency market is in the first The quarter experienced a strong growth phase, with Bitcoin surging to an all-time high of $73,000. This was followed by a quieter period of consolidation, characterized by weakening catalysts and a significant reallocation of supply from major market players. Now, as 2024 draws to a close, optimism is back, driven by U.S. support for cryptocurrencies and the start of a rate-cutting cycle.

Bitcoin (BTC) is undoubtedly the focus of this year, with gains of up to 20% so far this year. 125%, outperforming traditional asset classes and cryptoassets. Solana (SOL) led the market several times this cycle, ending the year up 78%, while Ethereum (ETH) continued to underperform, rising 44% for the year.

The above chart shows the top 30 cryptoassets in the datonomyTM space, with a market capitalization of over $1 billion. Fueled by retail enthusiasm, meme coins such as DOGE and PEPE have attracted widespread attention, while "dinosaur coins" such as Ripple (XRP) and Stellar (XLM) have made an unexpected comeback. Alternative Layer-1s like Sui (SUI) and established blue-chip DeFi protocols like Aave have also gained traction, reflecting investor sentiment and the rotation of themes shaping the market in 2024.

Q1: ETF floodgates open, Memecoin craze, Ethereum scales with Blob

The emergence of spot Bitcoin ETFs has sparked a wave of mass adoption, opening the floodgates for Wall Street. Assets under management (AUM) among 11 issuers now exceed $105 billion, and these vehicles hold more than 120 million BTC. That’s equivalent to 5.6% of Bitcoin’s current supply, with demand from corporate balance sheets further accelerating the rate at which supply is being absorbed by the spot Bitcoin ETF in less than a year since its launch. Experienced strong flows, solidifying its status as the most successful debut of any ETF category in history

Weekly flows show continued accumulation, Net additions exceeded $2 billion during the peak week, despite occasional outflows during the summer market consolidation

While Bitcoin drove institutional adoption and drove the overall market higher, memecoins began to attract a lot of attention, leading to an upward trend driven by extreme risk. In early March, memecoin spot trading volume reached $13 billion, The market cap of major memecoins reaches $60 billion

While mature large-scale memecoins have. growth, but most activity originates from Solana A flood of new meme coins launched on the market. A platform called pump.fun became the center of the memecoin explosion in the first quarter, facilitating the creation of more than 75,000 tokens and pushing active wallets on Solana to a then-record 2.06 million. While these high levels of activity failed to persist, meme coins made a comeback, with trading volumes exceeding $23 billion in November like Virtuals on Base. Agency platforms have breathed new life into this phenomenon

March. Also a major milestone for Ethereum, Ethereum deployed EIP-4844 in Dencun UpgradeSoon after, Ethereum Layer 2 Rollup adopted the new blob transaction fee market in parallel with the mainnet. In Base, Optimism Laying the foundation for expanded execution scope with the help of Layer 2 like Arbitrum andThis reduces Layer 1 settlement costs, making transactions on the network more affordable. Demand for blobs has been strong, with Ethereum consistently reaching its target capacity of three blobs per block just seven months after launch.

While this makes the Ethereum ecosystem more accessible, it can be said to hinder the value accumulation of ETH due to the reduction of layer 1 fees, and also leads to The user experience is more fragmented. However, the space shows no signs of drying up, with well-known exchanges such as Kraken and Uniswap, Deutsche Bank, and Multinational Group (Sony) driving the development of layer 2, with increased blob capacity just around the corner.

Q2: Summer market conditions: The peak supply season begins

The second quarter is characterized by a consolidation period, with the market fluctuating in a range due to a lack of catalysts. In April, Bitcoin experienced its quadrennial halving event, reducing the daily issuance from 900 to 450 coins. Like the halving event, this brought a turning point for the mining industry, forcing miners to adapt to the reduction in block subsidies. The incident spurred upgrades to more efficient ASIC hardware, sparked further consolidation in the mining industry, and prompted some miners to repurpose their infrastructure into AI data centers to diversify their revenue streams.

As shown in the chart below, transaction fees have become a key component of mining revenue, partially offsetting the decline in block subsidies. Still, overall hash prices (daily USD revenue per TH/s) remain under pressure, reflecting miners’ increasing reliance on network activity to maintain sustainability.

Exacerbating these challenges are additional supply pressures. The most notable of these was the long-awaited Mt. Gox bankruptcy asset distribution, which saw thousands of BTC re-enter the market. Likewise, Germany sold over 50,000 BTC seized in a criminal investigation, which increased selling pressure and exacerbated supply-side dynamics. Despite these sell-offs, Bitcoin liquidity has remained resilient, absorbing supply without causing significant disruption to market stability. Going forward, selling pressure is likely to lessen as FTX creditors will receive cash distributions in 2025 and potentially re-enter the market.

Q3: Stablecoins and Tokenization Spring

Stablecoins are recognized as the "killer application of cryptocurrencies", and their global importance is beginning to penetrate the cryptocurrency industry outside. Stablecoins continue to export dollars around the world, with total supply exceeding $210 billion. USDT (USDC ($138 billion) and USDC ($42 billion) still dominate, while most stablecoin supply leans toward the Ethereum network, with stablecoin supply at $122 billion. Overall, stablecoins facilitated $1.4 trillion in monthly (adjusted) transfer volume in November.

Although the role of stablecoins as a medium of exchange and store of value in emerging economies has been widely explored, with Stripe’s acquisition of Bridge, its role in payments and Utility development in financial services infrastructure has further accelerated. Additionally, 99% of stablecoins are pegged to the U.S. dollar, and Tether and Circle have invested nearly $100 billion directly in U.S. Treasuries, cementing their position as a key tool in maintaining the U.S. dollar’s ​​global dominance.

Meanwhile, BlackRock entered the tokenization space with the launch of BlackRock The German Dollar Institutional Digital Liquidity Fund (BUIDL) invests in U.S. dollar-equivalent assets such as cash and U.S. Treasury bills. BUIDL’s supply quickly reached 500 million, expanding the landscape of tokenized securities on public blockchains. The ecosystem expands in 2024, offering stablecoins with different risk profiles, liquidity, collateral, and savings mechanisms. Ethena’s USDe stands out as the third-largest stablecoin, growing from $91 million to $6 billion in market capitalization, taking advantage of positive funding rates to offer holders attractive yields amid rising market trends. Meanwhile, First Digital USD (FDUSD) is making a name for itself as a source of liquidity and a widely used quote currency on exchanges.

Regulatory authorities are paying increasing attention to stablecoins, reflecting the increasing importance of stablecoins in the global financial system. The European Union has implemented specific requirements for stablecoins under the Markets in Crypto-Assets (MiCA) regulation, which has begun to reshape the euro-pegged stablecoin industry.

Q4: Election frenzy

The 2024 U.S. presidential election will have a profound impact on the digital asset market , pushing BTC to break through $100,000 for the first time. Specialized coins (including memes and privacy coins) and smart contract platforms within Coin Metrics’ datonomyTM space are standout areas, with returns of 129% and 84% respectively since the election.

In the run-up to the election, we also witnessed the rise of prediction markets such as Polymarket, which played a role in gathering collective intelligence on election results Key role. At its peak, Polymarket's open interest was worth over $450 million, although activity on the platform has now subsided, demonstrating the utility and potential of information markets on public blockchains. p style="text-align: left;">Market optimism is running high after the election, fueled by a pro-crypto stance that contrasts with the regulatory pushback of the previous SEC regime. Demand for ETFs and corporate bonds fueled Bitcoin's gains, MicroStrategy's holdings Reaching 444,262 BTC, funding came from its equity and convertible bond issuance. Institutional investor interest in the derivatives market hit a new high, reflected in CME’s Bitcoin futures open interest hitting a record of $22.7 billion, while the total exceeded 52 billion US dollars, and option ETFs have also been launched.

Despite the strong momentum, Cryptocurrency friendly The implementation and timeline remain uncertain, although there are clear signs that the regulatory environment will be more supportive of cryptocurrencies, including the appointment of cryptocurrency advocates to key positions such as SEC Chairman and Crypto Czar, but the specific regulatory framework remains. Not clear. Market enthusiasm is also tempered by expectations of interest rate cuts, and participants are cautiously optimistic about 2025.

Nonetheless, 2024 remains for us. Laying a Strong Foundation: Spot Bitcoin ETF The launch of , stablecoin adoption accelerating, major advancements in on-chain infrastructure and applications, and pro-cryptocurrency taking office at the start of the rate cut cycle, stay tuned for our2025 . Cryptocurrency Outlook report, where we explore the key themes and trends shaping the year ahead