Top Crypto Moments of the Year and Their Market Impact

Take key

• Bitcoin’s rise beyond $100,000 in 2025 marked a shift from speculative trading to long-term institutional adoption. Banks and governments began to see BTC as a strategic reserve asset.

• The GENIUS Act established a unified US framework for payment stablecoins, requiring 1:1 reserve support, stricter issuer qualifications and stronger consumer protection.

• Real-world asset tokenization has surpassed $30 billion in chain led by tokenized US Treasuries and private credit. Companies like BlackRock, JPMorgan and Apollo integrated RWA into DeFi markets.

• Onchain perpetual futures have recorded over $1 trillion in monthly trading volume, with platforms like Hyperliquid achieving speed and depth comparable to centralized exchanges.

Bitcoin (BTC) crossing the $100,000 threshold this year carried more symbolic weight than speculative excitement. What was once seen as a speculative asset has become a structured part of the global financial system. 2025 has become a year focused less on hype and more on significant progress in infrastructure, regulation, institutional investment and technology.

This article highlights the most significant cryptocurrency events of the year.

Bitcoin is entering an institutional phase

Spot Bitcoin Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs) it brought Bitcoin into the portfolios of asset managers, pension funds and corporate treasurers, pushing it beyond retail markets. Daily ETF inflows have become a key indicator of market confidence. Unlike previous cycles driven by highly leveraged trading, 2025 has seen steady interest from professional investors.

Banks started doing Bitcoin transactions on their own balance sheets. Intesa Sanpaolo, Italy’s largest bank, made its first real Bitcoin trade in January 2025, buying 1 million euros of BTC as an experiment. Several countries have also explored the idea of Bitcoin strategic reservesin reference to long-term national holdings of assets.

On March 6, 2025, the President of the United States, Donald Trump, signed an executive order establishing a strategic Bitcoin reserve, a permanent asset fund backed by lost BTC. The Czech National Bank has also announced that it plans to add Bitcoin to its strategic reserves.

do you know Bitcoin mining companies partner with power producers to stabilize power grids and monetize surplus power.

Approval of the GENIUS Act

In 2025, stablecoins matured from trading instruments in regulated payment and settlement assets. U GENIUS Actsigned into law on July 18, 2025, it established the first comprehensive US federal framework for payment stablecoins.

The law clarifies that qualified payment stablecoins are not securities, creates a unified licensing and federal oversight regime for issuers and requires 1:1 reserve backing with high-quality, highly liquid assets such as cash and short-term US Treasuries. It also prevents regular public disclosure of reserve composition to ensure transparency and consumer protection.

Only approved and qualified entities, such as subsidiaries of insured depository institutions, can now issue stablecoins. These issuers must meet strict standards for capital, liquidity and risk management. The act also includes provisions to protect stablecoin holders in the event of issuer insolvency.

While the GENIUS Act drew on previous proposals, it strengthened safeguards for financial stability. It addressed concerns about a fragmented monetary system by establishing a clearer and more coordinated regulatory framework for digital dollar payments.

The rise of asset tokenization in the real world

In 2025, tokenization of real world assets (RWA). transition from experimental pilots to institutional mainstream, with the onchain value surpassing $30 billion, representing a 300%-400% increase in three years. US Treasuries and private credit drive institutional adoption.

Launched in March 2024, the BlackRock USD Institutional Digital Liquidity Fund (BUIDL) brings US Treasurys onchain through tokenization. BUIDL now has over $2 billion in total value locked (TVL) through multiple blockchains and distributes daily interest, backed 1:1 by real world assets.

The benefits of RWA tokenization include fractional ownership, 24/7 liquidity and cross-chain interoperability through protocols such as Chainlink CCIP. Institutions such as JPMorgan and Apollo integrate RWA into decentralized finance (DeFi)further blurring the boundaries between traditional finance and blockchain.

do you know Tokenized US Treasuries have become one of the fastest growing categories in DeFi, offering on-chain performance at low risk.

Onchain perpetual futures and the Hyperliquid stage

In October 2025, Perpetual DeFi Futures exceeded $1 trillion in monthly trading volume, putting platforms like Hyperliquid on par with centralized crypto exchanges. Daily trading volume for decentralized perpetual contracts averaged around $45.7 billion that month, while onchain open interest rose to $16 billion. This increase reflects sustained market positioning rather than short-term speculative activity.

Hyperliquid’s HIP-3 upgrade in October enabled permissionless market creation through the staking of 500,000 HYPE tokens. The upgrade decentralized listings and encouraged innovation in new asset classes such as equities and RWAs. The platform’s sub-second execution and deep liquidity have further narrowed the gap between centralized and decentralized exchanges.

Ethereum strengthens its core role

This year, Ethereum has strengthened its fundamental role in the blockchain ecosystem through strategic updates and growing institutional adoption. U The Pectra updateactivated in May, it doubled blob capacity, reduced layer 2 fees and improved transaction. It also raised the validator staking cap from 32 ETH to 2,048 ETH, increasing validator efficiency.

In July 2025, spot Ether ETF attracted $12.1 billion in inflows, led by BlackRock’s iShares Ethereum Trust (ETHA), highlighting strong institutional demand. Regulatory clarity from the US Securities and Exchange Commission’s rulings has positioned Ethereum as a comprehensive infrastructure for DeFi and RWA, strengthening its role as Web3’s resilient settlement layer. The upcoming Face upgrade in December it is expected to deliver more PeerDAS optimizations, strengthening the long-term position of Ethereum.

do you know Corporations are increasingly using private or hybrid Ethereum blockchains for supply chain tracking and settlement workflows.

The transformation of Solana

Solana’s narrative took a very positive turn in 2025. Once criticized for network outages and instability, the network has made great strides in reliability and performance. The introduction of Firedancer, a new validator client, enhances redundancy and processing capacity, reflecting Solana’s focus on reliable large-scale operations.

Institutional and derivatives markets will also embrace Solana in 2025. The main regulated platforms have introduced Solana-based futures and options, which allow hedging and arbitration opportunities that were previously limited to Bitcoin and Ether (ETH). This development reinforced Solana’s growing importance in high-volume applications such as onchain trading, gaming and consumer services.

The industry faces security challenges

The industry faced another reminder in 2025 that security remains a major challenge. With more than $2.17 billion stolen from cryptocurrency services since November 11, 2025, this year has already proven more devastating than the entirety of 2024 in terms of total losses. A large part of the stolen funds come from Bybit hack from North Korea $1.5 billion.

As cryptocurrency becomes more integrated into global finance, security failures can now pose systemic risks rather than isolated incidents. The increasing sophistication of attackers has reflected the industry’s own technological progress. By 2025, AI-driven attacks and complex supply chain vulnerabilities will lead to widespread industry-wide efforts to strengthen cybersecurity practices.