Crypto Market Guide 2025: 4 Key Trends to Watch in Q1

Bitcoin’s bull run is likely to continue, considering historical cycles and institutional demand.

Altcoins and Layer-2 solutions play a big role in this trend by making crypto more scalable and accessible.

2024 was an eventful year for crypto enthusiasts and investors as the crypto market came back to life. Unlike the previous year, which was relatively gloomy for the industry, several assets, including Bitcoin , rebounded to achieve new all-time highs.

However, Glassnode and Coinbase Institutional have recently released a new , pointing out some of the trends seen at the tail end of 2024 that may have been behind the crypto market resurgence.

This crypto market guide will look at four of those key trends and how they will continue to affect the market in Q1 of 2025.

Bitcoin

Bitcoin continues to hold its position as the world’s number 1 cryptocurrency. For many years, it has maintained its dominance over other asset classes, and it is still retaining that.

After crossing the $100,000 mark for the first time in December, Bitcoin’s liquid supply rose sharply in Q4 as long-term holders and newer traders cashed in on their profit. However, many traders did this expecting a price decline to follow, even if it was temporary.

From the look of things, though, they may have thought wrong. Data from Glassnode reveals that the current BTC cycle looks exactly like that of the 2015-2018 cycle. This means that Bitcoin’s current bull run is far from being over.

With such potential, many investors, especially the pros, are turning to Bitcoin as a hedge against the rise in the US national debt profile. Together with BTC’s performance after past halving events, Bitcoin’s growth is likely to continue for the rest of Q1 2025.

Altcoins and the Rise of Layer-2 Solutions

It’s not just Bitcoin that is doing well. Altcoins have also been attracting new investors. In late 2024, many altcoin investors came together to take a bigger portion of the market, indicating some sort of investor appetite for diversification.

Meanwhile, the rapid adoption of Layer-2 (L2) networks is closely linked to the increased adoption of altcoins, particularly on Ethereum. Layer 2 solutions enable faster and cheaper transactions. By adopting them, more layer 2 tokens like the Mantle and Arbitrum have become accessible in the Ethereum ecosystem.

The growth of L2s reflects the ongoing maturation of the crypto sector. So, it might be safe to say that such a shift towards scalable and more user-friendly solutions will only grow further in Q1 2025.

Mobile Wallets and Active Trading

Another major crypto market trend that we will likely see in 2025 is the rise in active trading due to an increase in mobile wallets.

According to the Glassnode report, mobile crypto wallets reached 36 million users in Q4 2024. Daren Matsuoka, a Data Scientist at Venture Capital Firm, believes that mobile wallets can turn passive crypto owners into active crypto users.

What this means is that instead of being HODLers and owners, many more investors are likely to use their crypto assets daily. Already, this has been reflected in Bitcoin’s active supply.

If that continues with other assets, it will lend further credence to the fact that the crypto market has matured.

Stablecoins

Finally, the transaction volume of stablecoins exceeded $30 trillion in 2024. This proves that individuals and businesses in regions with limited access to traditional banking services are embracing the asset class.

While clearer regulations are needed to ensure widespread adoption and consumer protection, stablecoins are poised to change how digital payments work – a trend that will continue in Q1 2025.

As Q1 2025 is moving forward, the crypto market is brimming with potential. The trends outlined in this crypto market guide, from Bitcoin’s continued growth to the adoption of altcoins and Layer-2 solutions and the booming stablecoins market, all reflect the major opportunities ahead for crypto investors.