Crypto market surged to $3.9 trillion record market cap as Solana's revenue plunged 90% in December: Binance

• The crypto market capitalization rose to $3.9 trillion in December, fueled by market optimism and strong institutional adoption.
• Binance analysts suggest that rising market optimism alongside anticipation for a pro-crypto government could expand DeFi growth in January.
• Solana's on-chain revenue plunged by 50% in December.

In a report on Monday, Binance Research stated that the crypto market reached a market capitalization milestone of $3.9 trillion in December. The researchers suggest anticipation surrounding Donald Trump's upcoming pro-crypto administration could stretch the bullish momentum in the coming weeks.

Crypto market cap surged to $3.9 trillion in December

In its latest report, Binance Research revealed that the crypto market reached an all-time high market cap of $3.91 trillion in December, fueled by "regulatory optimism" and growing institutional interest. 

The report noted that Bitcoin surged to a record $108,000, a feat which was stirred by MicroStrategy's inclusion in the Nasdaq 100 and continued BTC acquisitions from retail and institutional investors.

Bitcoin closed 2024 with a ~123.4% market cap growth, solidifying its position as a major global asset. As a result, BTC became the 7th largest asset by market cap, overtaking Saudi Aramco and silver.

Binance Research notes that if Bitcoin sustains this trajectory in 2025, it could continue climbing the global asset rankings. 

Monthly volumes for decentralized spot and perpetual trading sees record highs

The report also noted that monthly volumes for decentralized spot and perpetual trading surged to $326 billion and $356 billion in the past three months. The hike in volume was mainly fueled by activities such as meme coin trading on Solana and AI agent token trading on Base, among others.

The report suggests that the renewed activity, coupled with the pro-crypto stance of the incoming Trump administration, has the potential to drive the DeFi sector's growth in January.

TRON and BNB saw gains in December, Solana revenue falters

TRON and BNB stood out as the leading performers among the top crypto assets in December, surging by 13% and 8%, respectively. A notable increase in network activity fueled TRON's rise after it generated $240 million in transaction fees in November.

BNB's rally was driven by significant advancements in its blockchain and a rise in institutional interest. 

On the flip side, XRP, Solana and Dogecoin saw declines in December amid the rally in the general crypto market.

SOL saw a nearly 9% decline in December. Binance analysts noted that the drop was largely a result of the market-wide sell-off stirred by the Federal Reserve's (Fed) hawkish outlook for 2025.

Solana also witnessed a 4.5% drop in its Total Value Locked (TVL) while its monthly revenue plunged by 90% from $1.13 million to $12 million in November — likely stirred by a 50% decline in daily transactions and rising competition from emerging blockchains.

XRP, on the other hand, began the month of December with a positive price movement driven by new developments in Ripple's ecosystem. 

This includes the launch of the RLUSD stablecoin, Ripple's partnership with Archax and the filing of an XRP ETF by WisdomTree. Despite the wave of events, XRP ended the month with a 9.3% decline.