The year 2024 marked a turning point for the cryptocurrency market, characterized by significant growth and key events that influenced the entire ecosystem. According to the “2024 Annual Crypto Industry Report” by CoinGecko, the market experienced remarkable expansion, with the total capitalization reaching 3.91 trillion dollars, marking an increase of 97.7% compared to the previous year.
Coingecko report: growth of the crypto market capitalization
The report by CoinGecko shows that in the fourth quarter of 2024, the cryptocurrency market capitalization increased by 45.7%, adding 1.07 trillion dollars and bringing the total to 3.40 trillion dollars. This increase was partly attributed to the re-election of Donald Trump in the U.S. presidential elections, which triggered a mid-quarter rally. The peak of 3.91 trillion was reached in mid-December, followed by a consolidation phase. In parallel, the average daily trading volume in the fourth quarter was 200.7 billion dollars, with an increase of 128.2% compared to the third quarter.
Dominance of Bitcoin, performance of Ethereum and Solana
Bitcoin has strengthened its dominant position in the market, representing 53.6% of the total capitalization. The price of Bitcoin reached a new all-time high of 108,135 dollars on December 17, 2024, surpassing the previous record of 69,000 dollars from November 2021.
This result has been supported by the approval of spot ETFs in the United States and by favorable macroeconomic policies, such as interest rate cuts by central banks.
Ethereum has continued to play a crucial role in the cryptocurrency ecosystem, with a 48.3% increase in transactions on Layer 2 solutions in the fourth quarter. In particular, the Base platform accounted for 48.3% of these transactions, highlighting a growing adoption of scalability solutions.
However, Solana has surpassed Ethereum as the main blockchain for trading on decentralized exchanges (DEX), accounting for over 30% of all DEX transactions in the fourth quarter.
Growth of AI agents and trading volume on CEX
An emerging sector in 2024 was that of artificial intelligence (AI) agents, whose market capitalization grew by 322.2% in the fourth quarter, rising from 4.8 billion to 15.4 billion dollars.
This trend reflects a growing interest in the integration of AI into the cryptocurrency ecosystem, opening new opportunities for innovative applications.
Centralized exchanges (CEX) recorded a spot trading volume of 6.45 trillion dollars in the fourth quarter, with an increase of 111.7% compared to the previous quarter, marking a new all-time high.
This data underscores the ongoing relevance of CEX in facilitating access and liquidity in the bull and bear cryptocurrency market.
Conclusion
The year 2024 was a year of growth and transformation for the cryptocurrency market, with Bitcoin consolidating its dominant position and new trends, such as the rise of AI agents and the growing role of Solana in DEX trading, which redefined the ecosystem.
The macroeconomic developments and technological innovations will continue to influence the future of the sector, making it essential to stay updated on the latest trends and analysis.
For a more detailed and in-depth view, it is recommended to consult the complete “2024 Annual Crypto Industry Report” by CoinGecko.
Source: https://en.cryptonomist.ch/2025/01/19/crypto-2024-explosive-growth-and-new-trends-according-to-the-annual-report-by-coingecko/