Crypto market in graphs. Key indicators for 2024.

The year 2024 has become one of the most successful in the history of the first cryptocurrency. This year was marked not only by the acceptance of the crypto asset in traditional financial markets, but also by achieving a new price maximum at the level of $108,000. Analyzing the year, Kaiko company analysts highlighted market events on Bitcoin’s path to $100,000.

US Elections

The US presidential elections, held in November 2024, became an important moment for the crypto industry. After the support of the cryptocurrency market by the elected president Donald Trump and the support from Vice President Kamala Harris, Bitcoin rose to about $74,000. By mid-November, the price exceeded $80,000, and in December, it reached $108,000.

Sharp increase in fees

Historically high transaction fees in the Bitcoin network have arguably been the most significant event of the fourth halving, which occurred in April. The average transaction fee in the Bitcoin network has sharply increased, reaching a record level of $146. For comparison, for most of the year, the indicator was in the range of $2-3, and the previous peak was at the level of $62, reached in April 2021.

BlackRock and Grayscale

This year, Bitcoin-based exchange-traded funds reached a record high of $100 billion in total assets under management. The largest of the 11 funds were BlackRock, gathering $54 billion in assets, as well as Fidelity and Grayscale, which attracted approximately $20 billion each.

ETH/BTC Ratio

The Ethereum (ETH) price-to-bitcoin ratio continues to decline after the largest ETH protocol upgrade in 2021. It reached 0.033 in November 2024, marking the lowest level in three years. Kaiko analysts cited weak Ether dynamics against Bitcoin, as well as the growing popularity of Solana due to cheap transactions and meme coin speculation as reasons. Additionally, attention from the SEC on Ethereum staking has added regulatory pressure.

Launch of ‘Ether’ ETF

After the July launch of Ethereum-based ETFs, the capital inflows into these funds were weak. However, large inflows of funds began at the end of 2024, especially after the November elections.

According to Sosovalue data as of December 25, more than $12.3 billion is managed by nine funds. The largest companies by assets include Grayscale ($6.5 billion) and BlackRock ($3.6 billion). Despite lagging behind BTC this year, regulatory changes under the new presidential administration in the United States could significantly strengthen Ethereum’s position.

MicroStrategy

The world’s largest corporate holder of bitcoin, MicroStrategy (MSTR), has increased its bitcoin reserves by almost 250,000 coins, or more than $24 billion. In November, MSTR shares reached a record level for the first time in 24 years, thanks to the rise in the price of bitcoin and positive market sentiments.

As of December 22, MicroStrategy’s balance sheet shows 444,262 BTC, worth over $43 billion, for which the company spent $27.7 billion at an average purchase price of $62,257 per BTC.

Recovery after FTX crash

This year, the crypto market has finally recovered from the collapse of the FTX exchange and the Alameda Research crypto fund. FTX was among the market leaders, but went bankrupt in November 2022, triggering a massive cryptocurrency crash.

The lost liquidity due to the collapse of FTX and Alameda has been fully recovered - the bitcoin market depth (the ability to execute relatively large trades without excessive impact on asset prices) has exceeded the pre-crisis level of $120 million.

Meme Coin Mania

In 2024, meme coins on Solana experienced a boom. In particular, thanks to the Pump.fun protocol, which allowed anyone to launch tokens for just a few dollars. However, in terms of trading volumes on centralized exchanges, well-known assets dominated.

As in previous growth cycles, Dogecoin has become a favorite among traders, according to analysts at Kaiko. Dogecoin started to rise after President-elect Donald Trump revealed plans to create the ‘Department of Government Efficiency’ (D.O.G.E.) under the leadership of Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy. Musk, the owner of the social network X and the CEO of the automaker Tesla, has been mentioning Dogecoin in his messages and speeches since 2019, even calling the token his ‘favorite coin’.

Regulation

The new rules of the European Union on crypto assets MiCA have influenced the trading structure in the stablecoin market tied to the euro. The new rules have led to updates in products on major exchanges. Despite this, trading in cryptocurrencies with the euro remained above the 2023 level, and new stablecoins that meet MiCA standards accounted for 91% of the market by November 2024.

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