Research on the Public Chain Industry in January 2025: Bitcoin's Dominance Further Consolidated

In January 2025, the total market value of the crypto market grew by 7.2% to $2.8 trillion, with major blockchain platforms showing a trend of divergence. Under the dual influence of new regulatory policies and breakthroughs in artificial intelligence technology, Bitcoin further strengthened its market dominance, reaching 71.3%.

Market Overview

The price of Bitcoin rose from $94,577 to $102,180, an increase of 8.0%. In contrast, Ethereum performed poorly, falling from $3,353 to $3,292, a decline of 1.8%, with the ETH/BTC ratio hitting a new low since September 2024.

Multiple important policy developments have had a significant impact on the cryptocurrency market trends. The new government's executive order on cryptocurrency regulation provides unprecedented clear guidance for the industry, particularly emphasizing the protection of self-custody rights and supporting the development of stablecoins. However, remarks at the end of the month regarding international trade tariffs have raised concerns about global economic growth, leading to a cooling of market sentiment.

The tokens launched by a specific political figure's family on Solana have triggered significant volatility in the Memecoin sector. This wave of speculation has notably diverted market attention and funds from other cryptocurrency sectors, including the blockchain gaming space.

DeepSeek's groundbreaking advancements in the field of artificial intelligence have also impacted market dynamics. This progress has accelerated the focus on decentralized AI infrastructure within the crypto ecosystem, and AI-related tokens have seen an increase this month.

Layer 1

In January 2025, the total market value of blockchain climbed 7.2% to $28 trillion, with Bitcoin's market dominance further increasing to 71.3%. Ethereum's share continued to decline to 14.0%, while Solana surpassed the BNB chain (3.4%) again with a 4.0% market share. Other public chains collectively held a 7.4% market share.

Solana continues to perform strongly, with a market cap increase of 22.0% to $112.3 billion, solidifying its position as the third-largest blockchain by market cap.

Among the top 20 chains by market capitalization, Stellar has performed outstandingly, with its market cap increasing significantly to $12.6 billion, while Litecoin and Monero rose by 23.5% and 21.6%, respectively. Cardano's market cap increased by 11.9% to $33.2 billion.

Emerging platforms maintain momentum, with Sui's market capitalization stabilizing at $12.4 billion in a competitive environment. Although TON's market capitalization dropped by 14.0% to $12 billion, it still holds a position in the top ten. Hedera has shown good growth, with its market capitalization rising by 14.2% to $11.7 billion.

Traditional Layer 1 platforms such as Polkadot, Near, and Aptos are under pressure, with market capitalization declining between 3.7% and 7.5%.

Bitcoin Layer 2 and Sidechains

In January 2025, Bitcoin Layer 2 and sidechains maintained a growth trend, with the total locked value reaching 2.6 billion USD, an increase of 5.2% compared to December.

Core maintains market leadership with a TVL of $660 million, despite a 9.3% drop from December, still holding a 25.3% market share. Bitlayer shows strong growth, with a TVL increase of 15.2% to $430 million (16.8% market share), while BSquared performed excellently, with a TVL surge of 19.7% to $400 million (15.3% market share).

Rootstock and BOB rank fourth and fifth with a TVL of $250 million and $240 million respectively, with growth rates of 10.8% and 8.9%. Notably, AILayer's TVL grew by 13.2% to $230 million.

On medium-sized platforms, MerlinTVL has gently declined by 3.7% to $170 million, while Stacks has maintained steady growth, increasing by 4.0% to $120 million. The performance of small platforms is mixed, with BounceBit growing by 7.3%, while new entrants like SatoshiVM and Naka have dropped by 11.6% and 14.9%, respectively.

Ethereum Layer 2

In January 2025, the Ethereum Layer 2 ecosystem underwent significant changes, with the total locked value dropping to $18.3 billion, a decrease of 6.7% compared to December. Market leaders showed a divergence in performance.

A well-known Layer 2 platform has maintained its leadership position with a TVL of $6.8 billion, despite a significant drop of 20.4% compared to December. Another platform continues its strong momentum, with a TVL increase of 14.0% to $4.6 billion, solidifying its second place. The third largest platform remains in third place with a TVL of $3 billion, only slightly down by 0.5%.

Among the best-performing platforms, World Chain excelled with a TVL increase of 27.6% to $350 million, while Paradex surged by 50.3% to $37.2 million. ZK Rollups showed resilience, with certain platforms growing by 7.4% and 12.2%, reaching a TVL of $900 million and $610 million, respectively.

Some mature platforms are facing challenges, with Blast TVL dropping by 33.8% to $400 million, and Fuel down by 47.3% to $110 million. Linea and Scroll also fell by 5.7% and 5.2%, respectively.

The competitive dynamics of the ecosystem continue to evolve, with Optimistic Rollup and ZK Rollup demonstrating varying degrees of success. As new entrants join the ecosystem, mature platforms focus on consolidating their market position by enhancing functionality and user experience.