In-depth Analysis of the Public Chain Industry in January 2025: Bitcoin's Dominance Further Consolidated

In January 2025, the total market capitalization of the cryptocurrency market grew by 7.2% to $2.8 trillion, with major blockchain platforms performing differently. Under the dual impact of new regulatory policies and breakthroughs in artificial intelligence infrastructure technology, Bitcoin reinforced 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 showed weakness, dropping from $3,353 to $3,292, a decrease of 1.8%, with the ETH/BTC ratio hitting a new low since September 2024.

Several important policy developments have significantly impacted the trends in the crypto market. The new government's executive order on cryptocurrency regulation provides unprecedented clarity 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.

A token launched by a certain political family on Solana has triggered significant volatility in the Memecoin sector. This wave of speculation has notably diverted market attention and funds away from other crypto sectors, including the blockchain gaming space.

DeepSeek's breakthrough in the field of artificial intelligence has also influenced market dynamics. This advancement has accelerated the focus on decentralized AI infrastructure within the crypto ecosystem, leading to an increase in AI-related tokens this month.

Layer 1 Ecosystem

In January 2025, the total market value of blockchain climbed by 7.2% to $2.8 trillion, with Bitcoin's market dominance further increasing to 71.3%. Ethereum's share continued to decline to 14.0%, while Solana surpassed a certain trading platform chain with a market share of 4.0% (3.4%). Other public chains collectively accounted for 7.4% of the market share.

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

Among the top 20 chains by market capitalization, Stellar stands out with a significant increase in market capitalization to $12.6 billion, while Litecoin and Monero rose by 23.5% and 21.6% respectively. Cardano's market capitalization grew by 11.9% to $33.2 billion.

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

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

Bitcoin Layer 2 and Sidechains

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

Core maintains its market leadership with a TVL of $660 million, despite a 9.3% decline since December, 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 exceptionally well, 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.

In the medium-sized platform, MerlinTVL gently decreased by 3.7% to $170 million, while Stacks maintained stable growth, rising by 4.0% to $120 million. The performance of small platforms varied, with BounceBit increasing by 7.3%, while newcomers such as SatoshiVM and Naka dropped by 11.6% and 14.9%, respectively.

Ethereum Layer 2 Ecosystem

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% from December. The performance of market leaders showed divergence.

A certain Layer 2 platform, despite a significant drop of 20.4% compared to December, maintains its leading position with a TVL of $6.8 billion. Base continues its strong momentum, with a TVL increase of 14.0% to $4.6 billion, solidifying its second position. Optimism 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 Starknet and zkSync Era increasing by 7.4% and 12.2% respectively, reaching a TVL of $900 million and $610 million.

Some mature platforms are facing challenges, with Blast TVL dropping 33.8% to $400 million and Fuel falling 47.3% to $110 million. Linea and Scroll also decreased 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 are focusing on consolidating their market positions by enhancing functionality and user experience.