The crypto market’s fluctuating performance and key trends in H1 2023 indicate potential for future growth and development.

According to the recent CMC H1 crypto report, the cryptocurrency market has taken a roller coaster ride in 2023. The total market capitalization swelled by 48% YTD, reaching a high of $1.17 trillion at the end of Q2. Despite these gains, the second quarter was almost identical to the first in terms of market cap, rendering it a “lost quarter” in crypto terms.

Total Cryptocurrency Market Cap. Source: CoinMarketCap

The first quarter of the year witnessed impactful events that shaped the crypto market. The price of Bitcoin, for instance, doubled, while Layer-2 solutions like Arbitrum and ZkSync gained popularity. Additionally, the non-fungible token (NFT) market became active due to product upgrades and Blur’s token issuance.

Bitcoin Price Movement & Key Market Events. Source: CoinMarketCap

On the contrary, the second quarter was rather lackluster, marked by the rise of “memecoin season” and BRC20 tokens. These trends, although noteworthy, did not replicate the enthusiasm of Q1. On a positive note, the CMC Crypto Fear and Greed Index reflected improved market sentiment, starting the year at around 30 (Fear) and concluding H1 at 52 (Neutral).

Crypto Market Trends: Standout Sectors

Despite the subdued second quarter, certain sectors showed impressive growth in market capitalization year-to-date. VR/AR led the market with a 704% increase, closely followed by AI & Big Data at 323%. Bluechip DeFi projects and Infrastructure sectors made a strong resurgence, with sectors like Lending & Borrowing, Derivatives, Storage, and Interoperability seeing considerable growth.

Top 10 Crypto Sectors. Source: CoinMarketCap

The Memes sector witnessed the most action in terms of new listings with 260 new coins. AI & Big Data, and DeFi followed in second and third places, adding 61 and 47 new listings respectively.

Most Viewed Sectors and Coins: 2023

The Memes sector dominated viewer interest in April and May, owing to the speculative “memecoin season” led by PEPE, which astonishingly grew by over 3700X from April to May. DeFi sector was the second most viewed, maintaining consistent interest throughout H1 2023. Similarly, the Collectibles & NFTs sector grabbed attention in the first three months, primarily due to the Blur Season 1 airdrop.

The surge in interest for AI & Big Data is attributed to the launch of OpenAI’s ChatGPT. Other most-viewed coins included DOGE, SHIB, BabyDoge in the Memes sector, and Ethereum (ETH) and Cardano (ADA) in the Smart Contracts sector.

Community engagement on CMC Community was strongest in the Memes sector, with PEPE, SNEK, LADYS generating substantial interest during the speculative memecoin season. Meanwhile, Arbitrum ecosystem tokens like Pendle and Radiant Capital, along with Optimism ecosystem tokens like Velodrome Finance, were the top gainers.

Key Market Predictions for H2 2023

Moving into the second half of the year, anticipation is high for the SEC’s approval of Bitcoin spot ETFs. If these ETFs secure approval, they could unlock substantial institutional investor demand, triggering a surge in Bitcoin’s price.

Bitcoin ETF Timeline. Source: CoinMarketCap

Meanwhile, Decentralized Public Infrastructure Networks (DePIN) are offering innovative solutions for sharing physical assets or services. Projects focusing on trading real-world assets on-chain, such as Maple Finance and Goldfinch, are gaining traction, while Liquid Staking Derivatives (LSDs) saw a dramatic surge in activity due to Ethereum’s Shapella upgrade.

The introduction of EigenLayer, a middleware platform that allows staked ETH or liquid staked ETH tokens to be reused on the consensus layer, has given rise to the promising theme of Restaking. At the same time, zkSync emerged as a popular Ethereum-based Layer-2 solution.

Other promising developments include the advent of modular blockchains like Celestia, which separates blockchains into execution, settlement, consensus, and data availability layers. Lastly, the saga of FTX’s bankruptcy and its impact on the crypto industry will be closely watched.

Global Crypto User Behavior

Bitcoin, as the largest cryptocurrency, remained the most viewed across all regions. In the Memes sector, coins like Shiba Inu (SHIB), Baby Doge Coin (BabyDoge), and PEPE gained popularity. Ethereum and its scaling solutions like Polygon and Arbitrum also received attention.

The United States continued to dominate in terms of cryptocurrency users worldwide, with other significant traffic coming from countries like India, Turkey, Germany, Brazil, and Vietnam. Thus, reflecting the global interest and participation in the dynamic world of cryptocurrencies.

The post CMC H1 2023 Crypto Market Report: A Detailed Review appeared first on Crypto Academy.

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Filed under: Bitcoin - @ July 19, 2023 2:27 pm