Key Points
- Bitcoin (BTC) saw a meager 0.8% price increase in Q3 2024, overshadowed by gold’s 13.8% surge.
- Despite a downturn in trading volumes, Bitcoin’s market dominance increased to 53.6% in the same quarter.
In the third quarter of 2024, amid growing global uncertainties, investors sought refuge in safe havens, leading to a notable rise in the value of gold and a modest increase in the price of Bitcoin.
Bitcoin’s Performance in Q3
While Bitcoin’s price only increased by a slight 0.8%, gold saw a significant 13.8% surge, according to data from CoinGecko. This was due to growing concerns about a potential economic slowdown in the U.S. and rising tensions in the Middle East.
The Japanese Yen also saw a strong performance, climbing 12.0% following the Bank of Japan’s unexpected rate hike. Meanwhile, Bitcoin only outperformed crude oil and the U.S. Dollar Index, as all major fiat currencies gained against the dollar due to fears of decreasing demand and changes in monetary policy.
Trading Volumes and Market Dominance
Despite Bitcoin’s modest gains, the top ten centralized crypto exchanges reported a combined spot trading volume of $3.05 trillion, indicating a nearly 15% decline quarter-on-quarter. Despite this downward trend, Binance maintained its position as the largest centralized exchange (CEX), although its market share fell below 40% for the first time since January 2022, ending September at 38%.
Crypto.com rose to the second-largest CEX, jumping from ninth place in Q2, with an impressive 160.8% growth in trading volume, capturing 14.4% market share. On the other hand, OKX and Gate.io struggled, each seeing trading volume declines exceeding 30%. U.S.-based crypto exchange Coinbase also faced challenges, with a 23.8% drop in trading volumes, leading to a drop from sixth to tenth place among the top exchanges.
Despite the market’s modest gains in Q3, CoinGecko analysts noted that Bitcoin increased its dominance to 53.6%, a rise of 2.7% quarter-on-quarter. The last time Bitcoin achieved such dominance was in April 2021.
