Binance Research November Market Review: Total Cryptocurrency Market Cap Reaches New High of $3.4 Trillion, Altcoins Experience Collective Recovery

This content discusses the key developments in Web3 for November 2024, providing an overview of the current state of the ecosystem. Before previewing the major events to watch for in December 2024, we analyze the performance of the cryptocurrency, DeFi, and NFT markets.

Cryptocurrency Market Performance in November 2024

In November 2024, the cryptocurrency market reached unprecedented heights, with a total market capitalization soaring to a record $3.47 trillion. This growth was driven by Bitcoin's significant rise to over $100,000 and substantial institutional participation, evidenced by over $6.5 billion in spot ETF inflows over the month, marking seven consecutive weeks of inflows. The Federal Reserve's rate cut to 4.5%-4.75% on November 7 boosted confidence in risk assets, while SEC Chairman Gary Gensler's resignation intensified speculation about potential regulatory reforms favorable to digital assets.

BTC and ETH spot ETFs led the charge, breaking inflow records with cumulative net inflows exceeding $30 billion and $577 million, respectively. BlackRock's iShares Bitcoin Trust and Grayscale's Ether ETF emerged as market leaders, highlighting institutional interest in cryptocurrencies.

Altcoins also saw a resurgence, with CoinMarketCap's altcoin season index climbing from 27 to 70, and total market capitalization increasing by $470 billion month-over-month. Fueled by explosive DEX activity exceeding $120 billion, Solana's daily fees surpassed Ethereum's, despite controversies dampening the trading frenzy of memecoins. Ethereum regained its dominance in stablecoin liquidity, surpassing Tron to become the leading network for USDT, with supply increasing by 31.4% to $61.8 billion.

November Cryptocurrency Monthly Market Cap Growth: 39.9%

Source: CoinGecko as of November 30, 2024

Monthly Price Performance of Top 10 Tokens by Market Cap

Source: CoinMarketCap as of November 30, 2024

In November 2024, XRP led the cryptocurrency market with an astonishing 362.3% increase, driven by the resignation of SEC Chairman Gary Gensler and growing optimism about Ripple's regulatory outlook. WisdomTree's submission of an XRP exchange-traded product (ETP) further solidified investor confidence.

ADA followed closely, surging 216% thanks to the Glacier Airdrop distributing $NIGHT tokens to ADA holders and Cardano's collaboration with BitcoinOS to leverage Bitcoin's liquidity. Speculation about Charles Hoskinson's discussions with the Trump administration added momentum to ADA.

Driven by Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy's "Department of Government Efficiency" (DOGE) initiative, DOGE rose by 160.4%, with speculation about its integration into social media platforms further fueling this trend. Supported by regulatory optimism and increasing enthusiasm for memecoins, SHIB also performed well, rising by 70.7%.

With institutional capital inflows, the Fed's rate cut, and increased adoption of second-layer solutions enhancing scalability, ETH rose by 45.1%. Bitcoin increased by 36.9%, driven by strong ETF inflows averaging $180 million per week and optimism about regulatory changes following the U.S. presidential election. TON (+33.3%), TRX (+24.7%), and BNB (+10.8%) achieved more moderate gains but also benefited from regulatory optimism and developments on specific platforms. Notably, BNB's growth was linked to the success of its BNB Greenfield initiative, which attracted major projects like Limewire.

Decentralized Finance (DeFi)

In November 2024, the total value locked (TVL) in DeFi surged by 33.7%, reflecting sustained on-chain momentum and higher expectations for regulatory clarity. Solana, Base, and Sui led the way, with TVL growth rates of 43.4%, 32.9%, and 54.0%, respectively. Driven by institutional and retail capital inflows, Solana's TVL reached a historic high of $8.8 billion. Major contributors included liquidity staking protocols like Jito, Sanctum, and Binance Staked Sol (BNSOL), as well as liquidity providers Drift and Raydium, which supported the network's expanding on-chain trading volume. The rise of real-world assets (RWA) further fueled growth, with developer activity surging by 14,450% as Chainlink's infrastructure connected blockchain networks with real-world data.

With strong user participation in the lending market, Base's DeFi TVL climbed to $3.4 billion, a growth of 33.4%. Uniswap's TVL soared by 55.4% due to seamless integration with Base and Arbitrum, solidifying its dominance in liquidity provision. The network also set a record for over 9.2 million daily transactions, highlighting its scalability. Meanwhile, driven by strong capital rotation in Sui's ecosystem, Sui's TVL reached a record $160 million. High-performing protocols included Suilend, which saw a TVL increase of 86.5%, as well as projects like Navi Protocol, Cetus AMM, and Scallop Lend, indicating the network's growing appeal in DeFi innovation.

TVL Share of Top Blockchains

Source: DeFiLlama as of November 30, 2024

NFT

Monthly NFT Trading Volume

In November, the total sales volume of the NFT market surged by 57.6%, with ETH NFTs surpassing $0.5 billion. However, the number of unique buyers and sellers decreased by 24.7%, indicating that fewer, higher-value transactions are consolidating. The oversaturation phenomenon persists, with approximately 98% of NFT projects launched this year remaining unprofitable, highlighting challenges in profitability and sustained market participation. The results for Ethereum series were mixed, with CryptoPunks leading with a growth rate of 141.4%, while Doodles rebounded impressively with a growth rate of 584.0%. Innovative projects like Courtyard.io continued to maintain stable activity, averaging daily sales of 3,500.

Fueled by enthusiasm for Ordinals and the BRC-20 protocol, Bitcoin NFT trading volume grew by 220%, with leading collections like ArtBlock and NodeMonkes achieving significant growth. Other chains, including Solana (+19.3%), Polygon (+28.6%), and BNB Chain (+48.1%), also reported notable increases. These trends reflect a resurgence of optimism in the broader cryptocurrency market, despite ongoing challenges in maintaining widespread participation and profitability.

Upcoming Events and Token Unlocks

To help users stay updated on the latest Web3 news, the Binance Research team summarized significant events and token unlocks for the upcoming month. Keep a close eye on the upcoming developments in the blockchain space.

Source: Itez, Binance Research

Largest Token Unlocks in USD

Source: CryptoRank, Binance Research