December marked a historic milestone for centralized crypto exchanges, achieving the highest combined spot and derivatives trading volumes ever recorded, according to CCData’s latest market report.
The report revealed a 7.58% increase in combined trading activity, reaching an all-time high of $11.3 trillion.
Binance retained its dominance in spot trading, registering $946 billion in volume, a slight 0.13% rise. Bybit and Coinbase followed, with $247 billion (up 18.8%) and $191 billion (up 9.62%), respectively.
Crypto Derivatives Trading Surges
Crypto derivatives trading also surged, climbing 7.33% to $7.58 trillion, the highest monthly volume in derivatives history.
CCData noted a spike in liquidations as traders sought to capitalize on market volatility.
December’s trading frenzy coincided with Bitcoin’s historic climb, surpassing $100,000 for the first time on December 5 and peaking at $108,249 on December 17.
However, the month also witnessed a sharp $1 billion liquidation on December 20, as Bitcoin fell 3.5% from its $100,000 level following Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell’s comments signaling no rush to lower interest rates.
Market optimism was quickly tempered, with traders unprepared for the impact of Powell’s remarks, according to Swyftx analyst Pav Hundal.
The market outlook turned brighter in January, as the U.S. Consumer Price Index (CPI) report showed lower-than-expected core inflation for December, boosting prospects for interest rate cuts.
Bitcoin rallied in response, recovering from $96,000 to $100,522.
With the Federal Reserve’s first interest rate decision for 2025 scheduled for January 29, traders are closely watching for further developments that could shape the market’s trajectory.
Bitcoin Network Settles $19 Trillion in 2024, Doubling Last Year’s Volume
The Bitcoin network finalized over $19 trillion in transactions in 2024, more than doubling the $8.7 trillion settled in 2023.4
The surge marks a significant reversal following two years of declining transaction volumes since 2021, according to Pierre Rochard, vice president of research at Riot Platforms.
During the 2021 bull market, Bitcoin’s transaction volume peaked at $47 trillion but plummeted sharply in the subsequent years.
“The Bitcoin network finalized more than $19 trillion worth of BTC transactions in 2024, decisively proving that Bitcoin is both a store of value and a medium of exchange,” Rochard said.
As reported, spot Bitcoin ETFs in the United States recorded a remarkable $35.66 billion in net inflows in 2024, significantly exceeding early industry projections.
BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust ETF (IBIT) led the market with $37.31 billion in inflows, followed by Fidelity’s Wise Origin Bitcoin Fund (FBTC) with $11.84 billion, and ARK’s 21Shares Bitcoin ETF (ARKB) with $2.49 billion.
Other significant contributors included the Bitwise Bitcoin ETF (BITB), which reported $2.19 billion in inflows.
At the close of 2024, the United States solidified its position as a leader in Bitcoin mining, accounting for over 40% of the global hashrate — the total computing power securing the Bitcoin network.
U.S.-based mining pools Foundry USA and MARA Pool played a significant role, collectively mining more than 38.5% of all Bitcoin blocks.
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