Coins: 16,072
Exchanges: 1,189
Market Cap: $3.778T 2.7%
24h Vol: $287.259B
Gas: N/A GWEI
Go Ad-free
Reports
TABLE OF CONTENTS

2023 Annual Crypto Industry Report

4.4
| by
CoinGecko
-

In the fourth quarter of 2023, the crypto market experienced a surge in anticipation related to ETFs, particularly with the growing optimism surrounding the potential approval of US spot Bitcoin ETFs. This optimism contributed to a bullish market sentiment, leading to a significant increase in the total crypto market cap from $1.1 trillion to $1.6 trillion, marking a 55% rise. During this period, the price of Bitcoin soared from $27,000 to $42,000.

When considering the entire year of 2023, the crypto market witnessed substantial growth, more than doubling its total market cap from $832 billion at the beginning of the year. This remarkable expansion was primarily driven by Bitcoin's impressive resurgence, experiencing a 2.6x increase. After the challenges and stagnation experienced in 2022, 2023 proved to be a robust year of recovery for the crypto industry.

Our comprehensive 2023 Crypto Industry Report covers everything from the crypto market landscape to analyzing Bitcoin and Ethereum, deep diving into the decentralized finance (DeFi) and non-fungible token (NFT) ecosystems, and reviewing how centralized exchanges (CEX) and decentralized exchanges (DEX) have performed.

We’ve summarized the key highlights, but be sure to dig into the full 52 slides below.


Top 6 Highlights of CoinGecko’s 2023 Crypto Industry Report

  1. Total crypto market capitalization rose +108.1% in 2023, from $829B to $1.72T

  2. Bitcoin grew +155.2% in 2023, with growing confidence in an ETF approval

  3. Ethereum rose +90.5% in 2023, though outpaced by Bitcoin

  4. Solana recorded a meteoric rise of +917.3% in 2023, with a resurgence in bullish narratives

  5. NFT Trading Volume Stood at $11.8b in 2023, 44% of 2022’s Figures

  6. Crypto trading volume hit $10.3T 2023 Q4, rising +53.1%

 


1. Total Crypto Market Capitalization Rose +108.1% in 2023, From $829B to $1.72T

The total crypto market cap climbed by +108.1% in 2023, or $869.0 billion in absolute terms

As for trading volume, it climbed throughout the year, with 2023 Q4 average daily trading volume at $75.1 billion, a +91.9% QoQ increase. Overall daily trading volume stood at $58.9 billion, which is still -31.6% below 2022 figures.

Notable moves within the top 30 cryptos in 2023 Q4 include Solana (SOL) climbing from #7 to #5, and Avalanche (AVAX) from #22 to #9. Solana managed to climb thirteen places in 2023 alone, having started the year in the #18 spot. New entrants to the top 30 include Internet Computer (ICP) at #16, Near Protocol (NEAR) at #23, Optimism (OP) at #26, and Injective Protocol (INJ) at #30. Hedera (HBAR), Binance USD (BUSD), Monero (XMR), and True USD (TUSD) slipped out.

 

2. Bitcoin Grew +155.2% in 2023, With Growing Confidence in an ETF Approval

Bitcoin (BTC) climbed significantly by +155.2% in 2023. In 2023 Q4 alone, BTC rose +64.3%, from $26,918 to $42,220. During this period, BTC hit a yearly high of $44,004, levels not seen since April 2022.

BTC had a strong first leg up in Q1, rising +72.4%, followed by another spike in Q2. It then pulled back in Q3, dropping -11.5%, before rallying in Q4. Similarly, the average trading volume of BTC dropped off around the end of Q1 and gradually declined in Q2 and Q3. It then picked up in Q4 to $18.0 billion, a gain of +64.3% QoQ.

 

3. Ethereum Rose +90.5% in 2023, Though Outpaced by Bitcoin

Ethereum (ETH) closed 2023 at $2,294, representing a gain of +90.5% in the year. ETH had its highest returns in 2023 Q1, rising +49.8% from $1,196 to $1,792. It then consolidated for the most part in Q2, and Q3 before rallying +36.4% in Q4. ETH hit a yearly high of $2,376 in December. 

Despite the implementation of the Shanghai Upgrade in April, which allowed the withdrawal of staked ETH, there were no significant price movements during that period. Average daily trading volume stayed relatively flat in 2023, except in Q4, where it picked up from $7.2 billion to $14.4 billion, a gain of +100.0%.

 

4. Solana Recorded a Meteoric Rise of +917.3% in 2023, With a Resurgence in Bullish Narratives

Solana (SOL) climbed +917.3% in 2023, from $10.0 to $101.3. SOL had its first leg up in 2023 Q1, climbing +112.9%. Price action of SOL in Q2 and Q3 was mostly muted, with the FTX bankruptcy estate selling its holdings. It then experienced an aggressive rally in Q4, hitting a high of $121.5.

Average daily trading volume also spiked in 2023, averaging $827.0 million in Q1, before spiking to $2.0 billion in Q4. Solana has seen a resurgence in bullish narratives, such as OPOS (“Only Possible on Solana”), its revival and resilience after FTX’s collapse, and numerous high-profile airdrops such as Pyth Network (PYTH), and Jito (JTO).

 

5. NFT Trading Volume Stood at $11.8b in 2023, 44% of 2022’s Figures

NFT trading volumes across the top 10 chains amounted to $11.8 billion in 2023. However, this figure is still less than half of the NFT trading volume in 2022, which stood at $26.3 billion.

Trading volume in 2023 Q1 stood at $4.5 billion, but it fell dramatically in Q2 and Q3, where figures stood at $2.7 billion and $1.4 billion, respectively. It then rebounded to $3.2 billion in Q4, thanks in part to strong Bitcoin Ordinals trading volume.

Ethereum continued to be the dominant NFT chain in 2023, capturing 72.3% of trading volume. However, this is a far cry from the 90% dominance it held in 2022. Chains such as Bitcoin and Solana were on the come up, particularly in 2023 Q4. Bitcoin surpassed Ethereum in trading volume in December, with $808.0 million in trading volume. This can be attributed to the introduction of Ordinals earlier in the year. 

 

6. Crypto trading volume hit $10.3 trillion 2023 Q4, rising +53.1%

Crypto recorded $36.6 trillion in trading volume in 2023. In 2023 Q4, volume increased from $6.7 trillion in Q3 to $10.3 trillion, a gain of +53.1%. This marked the first quarter-on-quarter growth of the year, attributed to market sentiment swinging bullish in anticipation of Bitcoin ETFs. 

Centralized exchanges (CEX’s) dominated trading volume despite the fall of FTX in 2022, and Binance’s regulatory hurdles throughout 2023. CEX : DEX spot ratio stood at 91.4%, while CEX : DEX derivatives ratio was 98.1%.


Read the Report: CoinGecko’s 2023 Annual Crypto Industry Report

We would appreciate a link credit to our Crypto Industry Report on CoinGecko if any of the above insights are used. A link credit allows us to keep supplying you with future data-led content that you may find useful.


 

If you have an account on CoinGecko, you can browse and download previous quarterly reports here! Not yet a CoinGecko user? Create an account now.

Receive daily crypto updates, straight in your inbox - sign up for our newsletter today!

CoinGecko's Content Editorial Guidelines
CoinGecko’s content aims to demystify the crypto industry. While certain posts you see may be sponsored, we strive to uphold the highest standards of editorial quality and integrity, and do not publish any content that has not been vetted by our editors.
Learn more
Want to be the first to know about upcoming airdrops?
Subscribe to the CoinGecko Daily Newsletter!
Join 600,000+ crypto enthusiasts, traders, and degens in getting the latest crypto news, articles, videos, and reports by subscribing to our FREE newsletter.
Tell us how much you like this article!
Vote count: 162
CoinGecko
CoinGecko
CoinGecko's editorial team comprises writers, editors, research analysts and cryptocurrency industry experts. We produce and update our articles regularly to provide the most complete, accurate and helpful information on all things cryptocurrencies. Follow the author on Twitter @coingecko

Related Articles

Select Currency
Suggested Currencies
USD
US Dollar
IDR
Indonesian Rupiah
TWD
New Taiwan Dollar
EUR
Euro
KRW
South Korean Won
JPY
Japanese Yen
RUB
Russian Ruble
CNY
Chinese Yuan
Fiat Currencies
AED
United Arab Emirates Dirham
ARS
Argentine Peso
AUD
Australian Dollar
BDT
Bangladeshi Taka
BHD
Bahraini Dinar
BMD
Bermudian Dollar
BRL
Brazil Real
CAD
Canadian Dollar
CHF
Swiss Franc
CLP
Chilean Peso
CZK
Czech Koruna
DKK
Danish Krone
GBP
British Pound Sterling
GEL
Georgian Lari
HKD
Hong Kong Dollar
HUF
Hungarian Forint
ILS
Israeli New Shekel
INR
Indian Rupee
KWD
Kuwaiti Dinar
LKR
Sri Lankan Rupee
MMK
Burmese Kyat
MXN
Mexican Peso
MYR
Malaysian Ringgit
NGN
Nigerian Naira
NOK
Norwegian Krone
NZD
New Zealand Dollar
PHP
Philippine Peso
PKR
Pakistani Rupee
PLN
Polish Zloty
SAR
Saudi Riyal
SEK
Swedish Krona
SGD
Singapore Dollar
THB
Thai Baht
TRY
Turkish Lira
UAH
Ukrainian hryvnia
VEF
Venezuelan bolívar fuerte
VND
Vietnamese đồng
ZAR
South African Rand
XDR
IMF Special Drawing Rights
Cryptocurrencies
BTC
Bitcoin
ETH
Ether
LTC
Litecoin
BCH
Bitcoin Cash
BNB
Binance Coin
EOS
EOS
XRP
XRP
XLM
Lumens
LINK
Chainlink
DOT
Polkadot
YFI
Yearn.finance
Bitcoin Units
BITS
Bits
SATS
Satoshi
Commodities
XAG
Silver - Troy Ounce
XAU
Gold - Troy Ounce
Select Language
Popular Languages
EN
English
RU
Русский
DE
Deutsch
PL
język polski
ES
Español
VI
Tiếng việt
FR
Français
PT
Português
All Languages
AR
العربية
BG
български
CS
čeština
DA
dansk
EL
Ελληνικά
FI
suomen kieli
HE
עִבְרִית
HI
हिंदी
HR
hrvatski
HU
Magyar nyelv
ID
Bahasa Indonesia
IT
Italiano
JA
日本語
KO
한국어
LT
lietuvių kalba
NL
Nederlands
NO
norsk
RO
Limba română
SK
slovenský jazyk
SL
slovenski jezik
SV
Svenska
TH
ภาษาไทย
TR
Türkçe
UK
украї́нська мо́ва
ZH
简体中文
ZH-TW
繁體中文
Log in
By continuing, you agree to CoinGecko Terms of Service and acknowledge you’ve read our Privacy Policy
or
Forgot your password?
Didn't receive confirmation instructions?
Resend confirmation instructions
Sign up
By continuing, you agree to CoinGecko Terms of Service and acknowledge you’ve read our Privacy Policy
or
Password must contain at least 8 characters including 1 uppercase letter, 1 lowercase letter, 1 number, and 1 special character
Didn't receive confirmation instructions?
Resend confirmation instructions
Forgot your password?
You will receive an email with instructions on how to reset your password in a few minutes.
Resend confirmation instructions
You will receive an email with instructions for how to confirm your email address in a few minutes.
Get the CoinGecko app.
Scan this QR code to download the app now App QR Code Or check it out in the app stores
coingecko
Continue in app
Track prices in real-time
Open App