Q2 2025 Rebound in the crypto market: total market capitalization rises, DEX volume hits a new high

In the second quarter of 2025, the crypto market experienced a rebound. The total market capitalization surged by 24%, recovering the lost ground of 663.6 billion dollars, closing at 3.5 trillion dollars, almost matching the highs of the beginning of the year. However, the situation behind this recovery is quite complex.

Although Bitcoin has once again broken through the $100,000 mark and a certain company's listing has rekindled investment enthusiasm, the spot trading volume has declined for two consecutive quarters. A large amount of capital has flowed into Bitcoin, increasing its market capitalization dominance to over 62%, while altcoins struggle to recover. Ethereum has performed strongly, showing significant quarterly gains, but it is still below the opening price at the beginning of the year.

At the same time, trading patterns are changing. The spot and perpetual contract volume of the decentralized exchange (DEX) has reached an all-time high, with some platforms performing exceptionally well. As the volume of centralized exchanges (CEX) declines, traders are increasingly turning to DEX, indicating that the cryptocurrency trading methods are undergoing widespread transformation.

This quarterly report covers everything from market trends to analyses of major public chains, delving into the DeFi and NFT ecosystems, and reviewing the performance of CEX and DEX. Here are the seven key highlights of the report:

1. In the second quarter, the total market capitalization of cryptocurrencies rebounded by 24.0%, reaching $3.5 trillion, close to the year's high.
2. Bitcoin rebounded to over $100,000 and hit a new high, with market capitalization share rising to 62.1%.
3. Ethereum rose from $1805 to $2488, but is still below the opening price of $3337 at the beginning of the year.
4. A certain encryption payment company's IPO was oversubscribed by 25 times, with the stock price rising a maximum of 864.5%.
5. The CEX spot trading volume decreased by 27.7% month-on-month, to $3.9 trillion.
6. The DEX spot trading volume increased by 25.3% month-on-month, and the DEX/CEX ratio reached a new high.
7. DEX perpetual contract volume reached a new high of 898 billion USD.

1. The total market capitalization of cryptocurrencies rebounded by 24%, reaching 3.5 trillion dollars.

In the second quarter, the total market capitalization of cryptocurrencies rebounded to $663.6 billion, an increase of 24.0%, closing the quarter at $3.5 trillion. This follows an 18.6% decline in the first quarter, and this rebound marks a complete turnaround for the market, returning to near the year's high.

Despite the market rebound, the average daily volume continues to decline, down 26.2% month-over-month to $107.8 billion. This marks the second consecutive quarter of contraction in spot trading activity. The volume in the first quarter was $146 billion.

2. Bitcoin rebounds and breaks through $100,000, with market capitalization rising to 62.1%

This quarter, Bitcoin's dominance continues to rise, increasing by 3 percentage points compared to the previous quarter, and up 7.6 percentage points year-to-date. Funds continue to flow into Bitcoin rather than altcoins, with Bitcoin's dominance reaching 62.1% at the end of the quarter.

At the same time, Ethereum rose slightly by 0.8 percentage points to 8.8%, showing a slight rebound from the multi-year low of the previous season. Among the top seven cryptocurrencies, Ethereum is the only altcoin with an increase in market share. The market share of stablecoins and other major encryption currencies has slightly decreased.

The market share of the "Other" category decreased by 2.0 percentage points to 13.7%, highlighting the continued weakness in the altcoin market.

3. Ethereum price surges but still below the beginning of the year

ETH closed at $2488 at the end of this season, up 36.4% from the beginning of the season. It outperformed mainstream cryptocurrencies such as BTC, SOL, XRP, and BNB. However, it has still not reached the opening price of $3337 at the beginning of the year.

Although ETH shows bullish momentum, the volume has decreased from an average of $24.4 billion last quarter to $19.5 billion. Institutional investors are still increasing their holdings, which may indicate that large transactions are taking place over-the-counter.

The average Gas cost this season continues to decline, dropping to 3.5 Gwei per day, down from 6.9 Gwei last season. However, the daily transaction volume has risen to 1.3 million transactions, up from 1.2 million transactions last season.

4. An IPO by a Certain Encryption Payment Company Sparks a Listing Frenzy

Although it is not the first publicly listed encryption company, the company's IPO on the New York Stock Exchange has sparked a wave of crypto companies seeking to go public.

The company went public on the NYSE on June 5, causing a huge sensation. Although there were initial concerns about the valuation being too high, the listing was a great success, with an oversubscription of more than 25 times.

After going public, the stock price fluctuated violently, with an issue price of 31 dollars, closing on the first day at 83.23 dollars. It then doubled in the following days, reaching a historic high of 298.99 dollars on June 23, an increase of 864.5% from the issue price.

The success of this IPO has raised people's expectations for other rumored upcoming listings of crypto companies.

5. CEX spot trading volume decreased by 27.7% month-on-month

The leading CEX spot trading volume this quarter is $3.9 trillion, down 27.7% from $5.4 trillion last quarter.

A leading exchange still dominates the spot CEX, maintaining a market share of 37%-39% throughout the season. However, the trading volume in April and June was below $500 billion. Despite a bullish market this season, with Bitcoin reaching a new high in May, the situation remains the same.

Only three exchanges experienced a quarter-on-quarter growth, increasing by 3.7%, 5.4%, and 3.0%, respectively. It is noteworthy that two exchanges have surged to the second and third positions, replacing the original exchanges.

Another exchange saw the largest decline, dropping from $560.2 billion last season to $216.4 billion, a decrease of 61.4%. After ranking second for two consecutive quarters, it has now fallen to eighth place.

6. The DEX spot trading volume increased by 25.3% month-on-month, setting a new historical high.

The total spot trading volume of the top ten DEXs this quarter is $876.3 billion, an increase of 25.3% compared to last quarter's $699.2 billion. With the significant increase in trading volume, the DEX/CEX spot trading volume ratio rose from 0.13 last quarter to 0.23, setting a new historical high.

The DEX with the largest quarter-on-quarter growth increased from 61.4 billion USD last quarter to 392.6 billion USD, a growth of 539.2%. It has now become the largest DEX, accounting for 45% of all transactions this season. This is mainly attributed to the new features launched in May, which facilitate trading on the platform. This has also made a certain public chain the most popular chain for DEX transactions, surpassing Ethereum, Base, and Solana.

Some DEXs on the Solana platform have all declined, with quarter-on-quarter decreases of 40.5%, 56.8%, and 73.4% respectively. As market attention shifts from Solana and meme coins this season, the volume has flowed to other chains.

7. DEX perpetual contract volume reaches a new high of 898 billion dollars

In this quarter, a certain DEX's dominance among the top ten perpetual DEXs continues to strengthen, with a market capitalization of 72.7%. Its volume reached 653.2 billion USD, ranking eighth among both centralized and decentralized exchanges.

Among the top ten, only four exchanges saw an increase in volume. In particular, a certain DEX doubled its volume month-on-month after launching a new model.

A certain platform that once led the development of perpetual DEX has seen a continuous decline in volume. The average monthly volume this season is 5.3 billion USD, only half of what it was at the beginning of the year.