Bitcoin Market Loses Nearly One-Fifth of Its Value

According to CoinGecko's 2025 Q1 Report, the cryptocurrency market, led by Bitcoin, lost nearly one-fifth of its value in the first quarter of 2025

The cryptocurrency market experienced a significant downturn in the first quarter of 2025, losing nearly one-fifth of its value, according to CoinGecko’s 2025 Q1 Report.

This downturn follows a period of gains towards the end of 2024. The total market value decreased by $3.8 trillion to $2.8 trillion, a 18.6% decline over the quarter. The shift in market sentiment occurred after the inauguration of Donald Trump as US president, in contrast to last year’s rally.

The daily trading volume also saw contractions, dropping to $146 billion, a decrease of 27%.

Bitcoin Insulates Itself

Bitcoin (BTC) performed better than most other cryptocurrencies, with its market share reaching nearly 60%, the highest in four years. The king cryptocurrency achieved peak valuation at $106,182 in January, shortly after inauguration, but later fell by 12% to finish the quarter at $82,514.

In comparison, gold and US Treasury bonds, traditional safe-haven investments, performed worse than Bitcoin during this period.

However, compared to Ethereum (ETH), the situation was worse. The price of ETH decreased by 45%, nearly erasing all gains in 2024. Its market share dropped to almost 8%, the lowest since the end of 2019.

As observed by most analysts, this downturn occurred as more activities shifted toward “Layer 2″ networks built atop Ethereum, not using the Ethereum main network.

Meme Coins Hit Hard

The previously hot meme coin space also received a setback. Following a boom in Trump-themed tokens, the industry was hit hard when the Libra token, introduced by Argentina’s President Javier Milei, proved to be a scam.

The project was abandoned by developers who took investors’ funds, shattering confidence in such tokens. By late March, new token launches per day on the platform Pump.fun had dropped by over 50%.

The decentralized finance (DeFi) industry also saw a decline, with the total money locked in DeFi projects decreasing by 27% to $48 billion during the first quarter. Ethereum’s dominance in the DeFi space decreased to 56% by quarter-end.

Stablecoins such as Tether (USDT) and USD Coin (USDC) became more popular with investors seeking a safer bet as the market tanked.

Solana (SOL) retained its leadership, holding 39.6% of all decentralized exchange (DEX) trading during Q1, mostly due to meme coin mania. However, Solana’s leadership began to decline at the end of the period as the meme coin mania faded.

The dramatic shift in market sentiment highlights how quickly cryptocurrency fortunes can change. After a promising end to 2024, the new year brought a harsh reality check for crypto investors, with nearly $1 trillion in market value disappearing in just three months.