growth for 2025 according to Binance

According to Binance, 2024 was a crucial year for the cryptocurrency sector, with a market expansion and the rise of new trends. 2025 promises to be equally interesting, with key themes evolving.

Lets see all the details in this article.

From ETFs to Bitcoin records: 2024 was a year of historic turning points, the analysis by Binance

The year 2024 marked a turning point for the cryptocurrency sector, with market growth of 96.2% year-on-year and significant milestones that have redefined future prospects.

The total capitalization has reached impressive levels, driven by moments of great momentum in the first and last quarter of the year.

The launch of spot ETFs on Bitcoin in the United States in January represented a fundamental catalyst, attracting new investors and strengthening the positive sentiment in the market.

Even the macroeconomic conditions have played a decisive role in supporting this growth. The Federal Reserve reduced interest rates in September, creating a favorable environment for investments.

Furthermore, the presidential elections in the United States and the subsequent expectations of pro-crypto regulations have given additional momentum to the sector.

The year was also characterized by the emergence of new narratives, such as restaking, memecoin, and agenti AI, which have captured the attention of investors.

The year 2024 was particularly significant for Bitcoin. In January, the approval of spot ETFs in the United States represented a turning point.

The cryptocurrency surpassed the long-awaited threshold of 100,000 dollars in December, consolidating its leadership in the sector.

The Bitcoin ETFs have attracted about 35 billion dollars in net inflows, reaching a total of 105 billion dollars in assets under management. The dominance of Bitcoin in the market has exceeded 60%, a level not seen since 2021.

The Bitcoin ecosystem has also experienced an extraordinary growth. The fourth halving event halved the annual issuance of the cryptocurrency, while the total value locked in Bitcoin-based DeFi increased by 6,400%.

Looking to the future, the maturation of ETFs, corporate adoption, and the development of Layer 2 are set to play a crucial role in the growth of the Bitcoin ecosystem.

Ethereum, the competition between alt-L1 and DeFi

Ethereum has maintained its dominant position among alt-L1, leading the market in terms of capitalization, trading volume, and TVL in DeFi.

However, metrics such as daily transactions and active addresses have been dominated by Solana, which has continued to stand out for its transaction speed and low fees.

The year 2025 promises to be an interesting one for Ethereum, with the anticipated launch of ETFs on Ether in the United States and technological updates like Pectra, which could further improve the scalability and efficiency of the network.

In the meantime, Solana has surpassed historical highs multiple times in DEX trading volume and is attracting more and more developers, despite the stablecoins on the network remaining relatively limited.

The DeFi sector also experienced a significant recovery in 2024, with an increase in the total value locked of 119.7%, reaching 119.3 billion dollars.

This revival has involved all the subsectors of DeFi, including the money markets and decentralized exchanges, which have reached new milestones.

The growing adoption by consumers and institutions has reduced the gap between the experiences offered by DeFi and those of centralized exchanges.

The year 2025 will be a crucial year to assess whether DeFi will succeed in consolidating these achievements and offering a tangible impact in the real world.

The development of on-chain financial primitives and the integration of smoother user experiences will be key elements to attract additional capital and users.

Stablecoin and new frontiers

The stablecoins have reached new records in 2024, with a market capitalization of 205 billion dollars. USDT has continued to dominate, but USDC has gained ground, recording an increase of 82.4% in capitalization.

A new competitor, the USDe by Ethena, has emerged as the third largest stablecoin in just a few months, demonstrating the growing interest in innovative stablecoins.

In 2025, the stablecoin market will likely continue to evolve, with new offerings capable of generating returns and integrating advanced features.

This sector represents one of the most promising areas to attract institutional investors and expand the adoption of cryptocurrencies.

Among the emerging narratives, artificial intelligence agents and memecoins have attracted significant attention. AI agents, initially launched as tools for analysis and entertainment, are rapidly evolving into increasingly sophisticated solutions.

In 2025, the entry of traditional players into the sector and the rapid technological development could further revolutionize this field.

Memecoins, despite being a highly speculative segment, have shown impressive growth in 2024, with an increase of 212%. Solana has established itself as the preferred platform for trading memecoins, thanks to its efficient and cohesive structure.