Research Summary
The report provides a comprehensive analysis of the crypto market in Q3 2023, highlighting key trends in market capitalization, trading volumes, and the performance of various cryptocurrencies, stablecoins, and exchanges. It also delves into the NFT market and the growth of tokenized US treasury bills.
Key Takeaways
Market Capitalization and Trading Volume
- Market Cap Decline: The total crypto market capitalization declined by 10% in Q3 2023, representing a decrease of approximately $119.1 billion. Despite this, the market cap is still up by 35% year-to-date.
- Trading Volume Decrease: The average daily trading volume in Q3 was $39.1 billion, marking an 11.5% decline compared to Q2.
Cryptocurrency Rankings and Stablecoin Growth
- Ranking Shifts: Solana climbed from #10 to #7 within the top 30 cryptocurrencies, while Litecoin fell from #9 to #14.
- Stablecoin Performance: TrueUSD was the only stablecoin in the top 5 to gain market cap, with a 12.8% increase.
Tokenized US Treasury Bills and RWA Protocols
- Tokenized T-bill Growth: Tokenized US treasury bills saw significant growth, with a market cap increase from $114.0 million to $665.0 million in Q3. Franklin Templeton controls 46.6% of the tokenized T-bill market share, followed by Ondo Finance with 26.8%.
- RWA Protocol Market Share: Ethereum has a 49% market share for RWA protocols, followed closely by Stellar with 48% market share.
NFT and Exchange Performance
- NFT Market: NFT trading volumes declined by 55.6% from $3.67 billion in Q2 to $1.63 billion in Q3. Ethereum maintained its dominance of 83.2% of the NFT market in Q3, while Bitcoin captured 5.6% market share.
- Exchange Performance: Spot trading volume across the top 10 centralized crypto exchanges (CEX) totaled $1.12 trillion in Q3, representing a -20.1% decrease from Q2. Binance’s market share dropped to a yearly-low of 44% in September, down from its yearly-high of 66% in February.
Actionable Insights
- Monitor Solana’s Performance: Given Solana’s rise in the cryptocurrency rankings, it may be beneficial to closely monitor its performance and market trends.
- Investigate TrueUSD’s Growth: The growth of TrueUSD, the only stablecoin in the top 5 to gain market cap, warrants further investigation into its underlying factors and potential implications.
- Explore Tokenized T-bill Market: The significant growth of tokenized US treasury bills suggests a potential area of interest for further exploration and understanding.
- Assess Ethereum’s RWA Protocol Dominance: Ethereum’s dominance in the RWA protocol market suggests it may be worthwhile to assess its strategies and potential impact on the broader market.
- Examine NFT Market Trends: The decline in NFT trading volumes and Ethereum’s continued dominance in the market suggest a need to examine current trends and future prospects in the NFT market.
