Bitcoin gained significant traction due to the approval of ETFs, driving market growth in the first quarter of 2024. Ethereum recorded astonishing achievements through its L2s and restaking in the reporting period. Solana delivered impressive results in the quarter, thanks to the rise of meme coins in its ecosystem.
The cryptocurrency market soared in the first quarter of 2024, with the total market capitalization soaring 64.5%. Amid this surge, detailed in CoinGecko’s “Q1 2024 Cryptocurrency Industry Report,” some altcoins spectacularly outperformed Bitcoin (BTC).
While Bitcoin set a new all-time high of $73,737 in March, some popular altcoins posted even more impressive gains. This insight and other cryptocurrency market developments reveal potential hidden gems for investors looking for dynamic opportunities.
Hype for Altcoins and Frenzy for Memecoins Grow
The approval of spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs) in the United States in January ignited the market. As of April 2, these ETFs had accumulated more than $55 billion in assets under management (AUM).
Despite the push from ETFs, the price of Bitcoin only rose 69% during the first quarter. However, Solana (SOL) and Maker (MKR) managed to steal the show, rising 100% and 132%, respectively.
Ethereum (ETH), the second largest cryptocurrency, also saw a relatively moderate price increase compared to Solana. In the previous quarter, ETH only managed to register a rise of 60%.
However, its Layer 2 (L2) networks flourished thanks to the gas rate reductions implemented by EIP-4844. As a result, these L2s processed more than $900 million in transactions during the reporting period.
In addition to the L2 boom, Ethereum also recorded amazing achievements in its reset sector. In the first quarter of 2024, resettlement on EigenLayer saw a 36% increase, with a total of 4.3 million ETH resettled.
The bulk of the re-statized ETH was held by liquid re-statization (LRT) protocols, which amounted to 2.28 million ETH. EtherFi was the top LRT protocol in the first quarter, with a 21% market share. It experienced a massive 2,616% growth throughout the quarter and at the end of March it had 910,000 ETH.
On the other hand, the rise of memecoins affected Solana’s performance. During the first quarter, the market capitalization of Solana’s top 10 memecoins skyrocketed more than 800%. At the end of March, these assets reached a staggering total market capitalization of $9.36 billion.
Cryptocurrency Market Expands in the First Quarter of 2024, According to CoinGecko
In addition to the cryptocurrency market, the non-fungible token (NFT) sector recovered in the previous quarter, driven by renewed attention paid to Bitcoin and Solana NFTs. Ethereum regained its position as the largest NFT chain, with more than $2.2 billion in trading during that period.
However, increased interest within the Bitcoin and Solana ecosystems challenged Ethereum’s dominance. Previously, an outlet media reported that by April 2024, Bitcoin ordinals, NFTs on the Bitcoin blockchain, had surpassed Ethereum NFTs several times in terms of sales value.
The upcoming Bitcoin halving and the launch of the new Runes token standard could increase competition. Investor enthusiasm was also reflected in the spot trading volume of centralized exchanges (CEX), which reached $4.29 trillion in the first quarter of 2024.
This is the highest level recorded since the end of 2021. However, decentralized exchanges (DEXs) saw Ethereum’s share of trading volume decline, with chains such as Arbitrum and Solana gaining attention.
By Audy Castaneda
