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Best of State of the Network in 2024

By: The Coin Metrics Research Team

Introduction

In this special edition of the State of the Network, we reflect on a year full of riveting data and crucial events through the lens of our favorite issues from 2024. This year, we covered a diverse range of topics in both breadth and depth, and we remain committed to delivering thoughtful, actionable insights in the year ahead.

Bitcoin

A Short Guide to Bitcoin Data for ETF Newcomers

As spot bitcoin ETFs launched in the U.S., we provided a primer on what makes Bitcoin unique, delving into its adoption, economics, supply, usage and market value.

Mining

Miners underwent a crucial year with Bitcoin’s 4th halving taking place this year. The Bitcoin ecosystem, miner revenues, adaptability and hardware efficiency was a major topic in our Quarterly Mining Specials.

In Q1, we found that Marathon mined the 3 largest blocks in Bitcoin’s history, with the first two contained a pair of NFTs linked to the “Runestone” project and the third being a audio Inscription from rapper French Montana, etching a MP4 file for his song (“Bag Curious”) into the blockchain.

Q1 Mining Data Special

Ethereum

Ethereum’s modular infrastructure, consisting of an Execution Layer and Consensus Layer, presents challenges in accounting for ETH’s total supply. We explored these complexities in SOTN #244, delving into the nuances of tracking ETH supply in a multi-layered system.

Conducting the ETH Census

Staking

As the largest proof of stake (PoS) blockchain, Ethereum’s staking ecosystem and yield are core facets to network health and potential institutional demand from staked Ether ETFs.

In SOTN #270, we understood the evolution of the Ethereum staking ecosystem, from "The Merge" to "Shapella", the rise of liquid staking tokens (LSTs) and beyond.

The Story of Ethereum Staking So Far

Layer-2’s and Blobs

Ethereum’s Dencun upgrade in March 2024 advanced its rollup-centric roadmap, laying the foundation for scalable, cost-efficient transactions. In SOTN #262, we analyzed the impact of EIP-4844 and the role of blob transactions in driving Layer-2 adoption.

Breaking Down Ethereum Blobs & EIP-4844

Solana

The Solana network had a burgeoning 2024, with a strong market recovery fueling the rise of meme coins and stablecoins.

In SOTN #254, we provided an overview of the Solana network, exploring consensus and staking mechanisms, transactions, user cohorts, and other intricacies as we introduced Solana network data to our suite.

An Introduction to the Solana Network

Stablecoins

Mirroring their foundational utility for the crypto ecosystem, stablecoins were central to the conversation across digital assets, payments and financial services this year.

In SOTN #243, we zoomed into Tether’s (USDT) dominance in the stablecoin market, breaking down its growth, usage patterns, and nature of its reserves.

Tether’s Ascent: Breaking Down the Dominant Stablecoin’s Growth

By the end of the year, the aggregate stablecoin supply crossed $210B. The landscape of issuers expanded beyond incumbents like Tether and Circle to payments giants like PayPal, financial institutions like BlackRock & Société Générale and DeFi protocols like Ethena.

In SOTN #274, we revisited the stablecoin ecosystem, exploring diverse approaches to collateralization, peg stability mechanisms, and the emergence of interest-bearing stablecoins.

State of Stablecoins: Sector Expansion & A Changing Interest Rate Environment

Derivatives Markets

As market structure and infrastructure matured in 2024, institutional and sophisticated entities drove a surge in activity within crypto derivatives markets. We provided an accessible introduction to futures, options and other derivatives.

Around the U.S. elections, we analyzed signals from options markets and examined what implied volatility reveals about market movements and sentiment.

The Election Bull Run Through the Perspective of Options Markets

Decentralized Finance (DeFi)

Decentralized exchanges (DEXs) are a cornerstone of the on-chain economy, providing critical infrastructure for trading and liquidity provision.

In SOTN #258, we examined the evolution of DEXs, focusing on automated market makers like Uniswap and Curve Finance, alongside key trends in liquidity and adoption.

The Usage and Evolution of Decentralized Exchanges (DEXs)

Other Notable Topics

• MicroStrategy’s Bitcoin Mega Strategy: A deep dive into MicroStrategy's bold approach to Bitcoin adoption

• Floating on Thin Air: Exploring how tokenomics and airdrops influence adoption and market dynamics

• A Primer on Blockchain Network Health: Analyzing key metrics to assess the operational & economic health of blockchain networks

• The Crypto Universe through the Lens of datonomy^TM: Leveraging Coin Metrics’ datonomy™ classification system to understand trends across digital asset sectors.

• Polymarket & the Power of Collective Intelligence: Analyzing how Polymarket’s blockchain-based prediction markets reflected sentiment around the 2024 U.S. Presidential Election.

• Unwrapping Wrapped Assets & WBTC: Examining the role of tokenized assets in crypto, with a focus on wrapped bitcoin (WBTC) and its custodial restructuring by BitGo.

Thank you for being part of our journey in 2024. We look forward to bringing you more insights in 2025!

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