tl;dr
According to CoinGecko’s Q1 2025 report, the cryptocurrency market experienced a significant decline, with the total market cap falling 18.6% to $633.5 billion. Trading volumes also dropped, with daily volumes down 27.3% quarter-on-quarter and spot trading on centralized exchanges falling 16.3%, par...
The cryptocurrency market experienced a notable downturn in Q1 2025, with the total market capitalization falling 18.6% to $633.5 billion amid recession fears and macroeconomic pressures. Trading volumes on centralized exchanges dropped 16.3%, a decline partly attributed to the Bybit hack, while daily volumes decreased 27.3% quarter-on-quarter.
Bitcoin increased its dominance to 59.1%, the highest since 2021, signaling its relative stability compared to altcoins. However, Bitcoin’s price still declined 11.8%, underperforming traditional safe havens like gold and US Treasury bonds, which were themselves impacted by tariffs. Ethereum lost all the gains made in 2024, reflecting continued market weakness.
Decentralized finance (DeFi) also suffered significantly, with total value locked (TVL) across multichain platforms dropping 27.5%. Despite some bright spots—such as Solana's dominance in decentralized exchange (DEX) trading and fresh inflows of around $1 billion into Bitcoin ETFs—overall asset values and total assets under management (AUM) declined sharply, with nearly $9 billion wiped out due to falling prices.
These results underscore a crypto market still grappling with economic uncertainty. After initial bullish momentum in January driven by political events and meme coin hype, widespread recession fears and global macroeconomic conditions weighed heavily on investor sentiment.
In summary, while pockets of growth and innovation continue to emerge within the crypto space, Q1 2025 was marked predominantly by losses, volume contraction, and cautious investor behavior—highlighting the ongoing challenges facing digital assets amid broader economic pressures.