In October, the total cryptocurrency market capitalization trended lower amid volatility, ending the month at approximately $2.6 trillion, down about 11%–12% from the start of the month. All top eight tokens by market capitalization declined, while spot BTC and ETH ETFs both recorded net outflows. On-chain, Solana continued to lead in transactions and active addresses, BNB Chain and Base grew, and cross-chain flows diverged; Ethereum still accounted for 53.4% of DeFi TVL. Key themes included prediction markets, stablecoin payments, and tokenized stocks, with related activity reaching new highs. Web3 disclosed funding totaled about $1.877 billion, while disclosed security losses reached about $6.362 billion.
Key Takeaways:
Crypto Market Performance: Total crypto market capitalization declined amid volatility in October, with losses accelerating late in the month, ending at approximately $2.6 trillion, about 11%–12% below the start of the month. All top eight tokens by market capitalization fell; ADA recorded the largest decline at 21.72%, while BTC and ETH fell 8.74% and 16.74%, respectively. U.S. spot BTC and ETH ETFs recorded roughly $516 million and $1.61 billion in cumulative net outflows, respectively, reflecting weaker institutional allocation demand and market risk appetite.
Major Blockchain: Solana continued to lead in transaction count and active addresses, with average daily active addresses of about 5.067 million. BNB Chain and Base grew 23.53% and 23.81% month over month, respectively. Stablecoin market capitalization remained concentrated on Ethereum and Tron, which accounted for 47.3% and 32.1%, respectively, while Arbitrum recorded cumulative net inflows above $600 million. Ethereum retained 53.4% of DeFi TVL, with Lido and Aave leading protocols at roughly $22.02 billion and $16.41 billion in TVL, while most major protocols contracted during the month.
Trending Projects and Sectors: Prediction markets surpassed $120 billion in monthly notional trading volume, with short-duration up/down contracts emerging as a growth engine and Kalshi further expanding its market share. Global crypto payment card spending reached $1.37 billion for the month. Gate Card spending totaled $3.79 million, up about 40.4% month over month, ranking third by 30-day growth rate. Tokenized stocks surpassed $90 billion in monthly on-chain transfer volume, with xStocks and platforms backed by exchanges and online brokerages driving much of the growth.
Funding and Security Incidents: The Web3 industry completed 54 funding rounds in October, with 44 disclosed deals totaling about $1.877 billion. DeFi and infrastructure received approximately $1.15 billion and $348 million, respectively, while Kalshi led with a $1 billion funding round. Disclosed security losses reached about $6.362 billion, underscoring risks across hot wallets, private keys, permission management, and third-party supply chains.
Discover more details today → Gate Research: October 2026 Crypto Market Review
Gate Research is a comprehensive blockchain and cryptocurrency research platform that provides deep content for readers, including technical analysis, market insights, industry research, trend forecasting, and macroeconomic policy analysis.
Disclaimer
Investing in cryptocurrency markets involves high risk. Users are advised to conduct their own research and fully understand the nature of the assets and products before making any investment decisions. Gate is not responsible for any losses or damages arising from such decisions.
Gate Team
November 9, 2026
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