In March, spot trading volume surged by 108%, reaching $2.9 trillion. This marks the highest figure since May 2021 according to analysts from S1 Production. Such activity is attributed to Bitcoin hitting record highs and an influx of investors eager to participate in the new rally.
Spot Bitcoin ETFs played a leading role in the explosive growth, accumulating $12.3 billion in investments in less than four months. Trading volume for these ETFs is increasing month by month, reaching $111 billion in March. Derivatives trading volume also saw a significant increase, reaching $6.2 trillion, an 86.5% increase compared to February.
However, the share of this segment decreased to 67.8% – the lowest level since December 2022. The increase in spot trading share is primarily driven by investors’ desire to move cryptocurrency to cold wallets after purchase. As a result, cryptocurrency exchange reserves decreased by 7.6% to 1.945 million BTC since the end of January.
This indicates traders’ expectations of further Bitcoin growth. Open interest in Bitcoin futures markets set a new record of $36.3 billion on March 29. Notably, the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) continues to outpace Binance in terms of trading volume: $11.7 billion compared to $8.4 billion, respectively.
This reflects increased institutional interest in Bitcoin. The cryptocurrency market continues to gain momentum in terms of trading activity. It is possible that new records will be set in April due to the market’s reaction to the halving and expected volatility growth.
