2025 Annual Crypto Industry Report

The crypto market faced a sharp correction in the last quarter of 2025, with total market capitalization falling -23.7% to end at $3.0 trillion. This marked a year-over-year decline of -10.4%, crypto’s first annual decline since 2022. While the quarter saw a brief record of $4.4 trillion, a historic $19 billion liquidation event in October sent prices down. Despite the price pullback, volatility pushed average daily trading volumes to an annual high of $161.8 billion, while the stablecoin sector climbed +48.9% annually to reach a record $311.0 billion.

The year was marked by a disconnect from traditional assets, as gold (+62.6%) and US stocks significantly outperformed Bitcoin (-6.4%). However, institutional adoption deepened with Digital Asset Treasury Companies (DATCos), which deployed at least $49.7 billion to acquire more than 5% of the total BTC and ETH supply. Other highlights include a +302.7% explosion in Prediction Market volumes and a historic high of $86.2 trillion in annual perpetual trading volume on centralized exchanges, indicating that despite the price contraction, market infrastructure and utility continue to scale.

Our comprehensive 2025 annual crypto industry report covers everything from the crypto market landscape to analyzing Bitcoin and Ethereum, deep dives into the decentralized finance (DeFi) and non-fungible token (NFT) ecosystems, and looks at how centralized exchanges (CEX) and decentralized exchanges (DEX) have fared.

We’ve rounded up the key highlights, but be sure to dig into the full 60 slides below.

Top 7 Highlights from CoinGecko’s 2025 Annual Crypto Industry Report

Total crypto market cap fell -10.4% in 2025, ending the year at $3.0t

Stablecoin market cap increased by +$102.1 billion (+48.9%) in 2025 and reached a new high of $311.0 billion

Gold dominated 2025, up +62.6%, while Bitcoin lagged, down -6.4%, alongside the dollar and oil

Digital asset treasury companies to spend at least $49.7 billion in 2025, with ~50.0% deployed in Q3 itself

Forecast markets saw volumes grow +302.7% in 2025, $63.5 billion

Perp trading volume on centralized exchanges grew +47.4% to $86.2T in 2025, marking a historic high

Perp trading volume on decentralized exchanges grew +346% to a new high of $6.7T in 2025.

1. Total crypto market cap down -10.4% in 2025, ending the year at $3.0T

Total crypto market capitalization decreased by -23.7% (-$946.0 billion) in the fourth quarter to end 2025 at $3.0 trillion. It was -10.4% year-over-year (YoY), marking the first down year for crypto since 2022.

2025 Q4 started off on a strong note, with market capitalization reaching a new record of $4.4 trillion. However, this was short-lived as prices tumbled until late-November, before the streak bordered on year-end. This decline was triggered by a historic $19 billion liquidation event on October 10, following the announcement of 100% tariffs on China by the US.

Meanwhile, average daily trading volume in the fourth quarter grew to an annual high of $161.8 billion (+4.4% quarter-on-quarter). This was largely driven by the historic liquidation event and subsequent high volatility. However, once the market turned a series of limits, volume gradually decreased.

2. Stablecoin market cap increased by +$102.1 billion (+48.9%) in 2025, reaching a new high of $311.0 billion

Total stablecoin market cap climbed by +$6.3 billion to end 2025 Q4 at a new high of $311.0 billion. In 2025, the stablecoin sector rose +48.9%, a gain of $102.1 billion year-over-year (YoY).

The most significant change within the Top 5 in the fourth quarter was the rapid lifting of Athena’s USDe, which saw its market cap drop by -57.3% (-$8.4 billion) in mid-October. Its supply collapsed from a peak of nearly $15 billion to $6.3 billion due to a depeg event on Binance, eroding investor confidence in high-yield looping strategies.

Meanwhile, PayPal PYUSD emerged as the fifth largest stablecoin, up +48.4% (+$1.2 billion) to reach $3.6 billion. It replaced World Liberty Financial’s USD1 at #5. This growth can be attributed to the introduction of creator payouts on YouTube and a ~4.25% return offered by the Spark Savings Vault.

3. Gold dominated 2025, up +62.6%, while Bitcoin lagged, down -6.4%, alongside the dollar and oil

Gold was the standout performer of 2025, rising +62.6% for the year. It jumped +11.4% in Q4 alone, driven by central bank accumulation and rate-related uncertainty. US stocks followed soon after, with the NASDAQ (+20.5%) and S&P 500 (+16.6%) fueled by the ongoing AI narrative.

While commodities and stocks boomed, Bitcoin (BTC) lagged behind, down -6.4% in 2025. The only assets to underperform BTC were the US Dollar Index (-10.0%), hit by interest rate cuts and political shifts, and Crude Oil (-21.5%), which struggled under a global non-OPEC production surplus.

4. Digital Asset Treasury Companies Spending at Least $49.7 Billion in 2025, with ~50.0% Deployed in Q3 Itself

Digital Asset Treasury Companies (DATCos) emerged as significant market players in 2025, deploying at least $49.7 billion throughout the year to acquire cryptocurrencies. Deployment peaked in Q3, accounting for half of the year’s total spending as a wave of altcoin DATCos launched.

However, the pace of acquisition slowed significantly in 2025 Q4, falling to $5.8 billion, as the crypto market crashed, dragging down the stock prices of DATCos. This resulted in the mNAV of many DATCs falling below 1.0, forcing them to deploy funds to buy back shares rather than accumulate crypto.

As of January 1, 2026, DATCs collectively held $134.0 billion worth of crypto, a +137.2% jump from $56.5 billion on January 1, 2025. DATCs now collectively hold over 1 million BTC and 6 million ETH, representing >5% of their respective total supply.

5. Forecast markets saw volumes grow +302.7% in 2025, $63.5 billion

Prediction Markets saw its assumed volume grow from $15.8 billion in 2024 to $63.5 billion in 2025, representing an increase of +302.7%.

Polymarket started 2025 with a market share of 85.6% in Q1, but was overtaken by Kalshi in Q4. Kalshi had a 39.6% share in the fourth quarter, followed by Polymarket with a 32.4% share. Meanwhile, Yzi Labs-backed Opinion, built on BNB Chain, emerged in November to challenge the incumbents. Its volume reached $7 billion in December, on par with that of Kalshi, although current volumes may reflect airdrop farming activity.

6. Perp trading volume on centralized exchanges grew +47.4% in 2025 to $86.2T, marking a historical high

In 2025 Q4, the Top 10 perpetual centralized exchanges (Perp CEXes) recorded $21.2 trillion, a -12.0% decrease from Q3’s $24.0 trillion. In 2025, trade volume will reach $86.2 trillion, representing an increase of +47.4% from 2024 and marking a historical high.

October 2025 was the second-highest trading volume month on record, after August 2025, when BTC hit its last ATH. In contrast, December was the least active month of the year, with $5.3 trillion in volume.

The relative market share between the Top 10 Perp CEXs remained largely unchanged throughout the quarter and the year. The only notable exception is the surge of MEXC in November and December, which jumped OKX, Bybit and Bitget to the number 2 spot.

Just outside the Top 10, KuCoin gained significant volume in 2025, becoming the only Perp CEX outside the Top 10 to exceed $1 trillion.

7. Perp trading volume on decentralized exchanges grew +346% in 2025, to reach a new high of $6.7T

In 2025 Q4, trading volume of the Top 10 Perpetual Decentralized Exchanges (Perp DEXs) grew +80.8% from $1.8 trillion in Q3 to $3.2 trillion in Q4. In 2025, the Top 10 perp DEXs recorded $6.7 trillion, a monumental increase of +346% from $1.5 trillion in 2024. Perp DEX:CEX ratio now stands at 7.8%, compared to 2.5% a year ago.

The increase in trading volume was driven by incentives and airdrop farming on exchanges such as Lighter, Aster, edgeX, GRVT and Paradex. Hyperliquid remained the most active perp DEX overall in 2025, although it was overtaken by Lighter in Q4. Hyperliquid and Lighter are now among the Top 10 largest perpetual exchanges by annual volume, with $2.9 trillion and $1.3 trillion in trading volume, respectively.

Read the report: CoinGecko’s 2025 Annual Crypto Industry Report

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