The latest quarterly report from cryptocurrency exchange Binance paints a picture of a “challenging” Q3 2022 amid broad weakness across digital asset markets.
In its third-quarter market recap, Binance highlighted an 8.6% drop in total crypto market capitalization alongside a 21.4% plunge in crypto fundraising versus the previous quarter.
The report cited persistently hawkish central bank policies as maintaining pressure on risk assets like cryptocurrency.
On-chain activity was also largely muted, with only layer-1 blockchain NEAR seeing a significant jump in transactions. NEAR also experienced a spike in active wallet addresses beginning in August.
Key metrics in decentralized finance (DeFi) declined as well, even as real-world asset integration increased. Total value locked in DeFi fell 13.1% in Q3, despite growth in liquid staking solutions.
NFT trading volume and prices remained depressed, with Q3 sales hitting the lowest level since January 2021 per the report. Gaming NFTs led activity but saw values fall nearly 45%.
The data reflects crypto’s cooldown following a hyper-growth phase in 2020-2021. But Binance pointed to increasing institutional involvement from players like Deutsche Bank, Sony, and PayPal as an offsetting positive development.
“Institutional participation in digital assets increased despite the bearish macro conditions,” the report noted.
Binance also highlighted improvements being built during the downturn, including Ethereum’s merge to proof-of-stake, Optimism’s Sybil resistance upgrade, and progress on regulation.
Of the top 10 cryptocurrencies, Solana saw the largest Q3 gain after prior weakness, surging 114% to buck the overall trend. Newcomer Aptos also debuted on the leaderboard.
Despite declining 12.8%, BNB saw the highest trading volumes among large-cap crypto assets as users sought shelter in bear markets. This activity supported Binance’s own revenue.
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