jakiro
source:Grayscale;Compiled: bitchain vision
Key points of this article:
-
In Q3 2025, all six cryptocurrency sectors had positive price returns, while fundamental changes were mixed.The “Crypto Sector” is a proprietary framework developed in partnership with index provider FTSE/Russell to organize the digital asset market and measure returns.
-
Bitcoin is not as good as other cryptocurrencies, and other cryptocurrency returns patterns can be considered “copy season” – although different from the past.
-
The ranking of the top 20 tokens in Q3 (based on volatility-adjusted price returns) highlights the importance of stablecoin legislation and adoption, rising volumes of centralized exchanges, and digital asset treasury (DAT).
Every asset in a cryptocurrency has some connection with blockchain technology and shares the same basic market structure—but the commonality is limited to that.This asset class covers a wide range of software technologies, including consumer finance, artificial intelligence (AI), media and entertainment.To keep the data organized, Grayscale Research uses a proprietary taxonomy and index series developed in collaboration with FTSE/Russell, namely the Crypto Sectors.The “crypto sector” framework covers six different segments (Figure 1).They contain 261 tokens with a total market value of US$3.5 trillion.
Chart 1: The “crypto sector” framework helps organize digital asset markets
Measuring the fundamentals of blockchain
Blockchain is not a business, but its economic activity and financial health can be measured in a similar way.The three most important indicators of on-chain activity are users, transactions and transaction fees.Since blockchains are anonymous, analysts often use “active addresses” (the blockchain address with at least one transaction) as an imperfect alternative indicator of the number of users.
Q3, fundamental indicators of blockchain health status are mixed (Figure 2).In terms of negative factors, the number of users, transaction volume and fees of the cryptocurrency sector of the currency and smart contract platforms have all declined month-on-month.Overall, speculation related to Memecoin has declined since Q1 2025, which has led to a decline in trading volume and trading activity.
What is even more encouraging is that blockchain-based application fees have increased by 28% month-on-month.This growth was driven by the activity of a handful of applications that ranked leading by fee income:(i) Jupiter, a Solana-based decentralized exchange; (ii) Aave, a leading lending agreement in the cryptocurrency sector; and (iii) Hyperliquid, a leading perpetual futures contract exchange.At an annualized rate, application layer fee revenue has now exceeded US$10 billion.Blockchain is both a network of digital transactions and a platform for applications.Therefore, higher application fees can be seen as a sign of the increasing popularity of blockchain technology applications.
Figure 2: In Q3 2025, the fundamental performance of each cryptocurrency sector is different
Track price performance
In Q3 2025, the return on crypto assets in all six crypto sectors was positive (Figure 3).Bitcoin’s performance lags behind other segments, and this return model can be seen as a “copy season” for cryptocurrencies – although unlike other periods in which Bitcoin’s dominance has declined in the past.The financial crypto sector led the rise driven by rising trading volumes of centralized exchanges (CEX), while the smart contract platform crypto sector may benefit from stablecoin legislation and adoption (a network where users use stablecoins for peer-to-peer payments).While all crypto sectors achieved positive returns, the AI crypto sector lags behind other segments, reflecting a period of sluggish returns in AI stocks.The performance of the currency crypto sector is not good, reflecting the relatively modest increase in Bitcoin prices.
Figure 3: Bitcoin performs worse than other crypto sectors
Diversity in crypto asset classes means frequent rotation of dominant themes and market leadership.Chart 3 shows the top 20 index eligible tokens in Q3 2025 based on volatility-adjusted price returns.The list includes some large-cap tokens with a market capitalization of over $10 billion, including ETH, BNB, SOL, LINK and AVAX, as well as some tokens with a market capitalization of less than $500 million.The financial crypto sector (seven assets) and the smart contract platform crypto sector (five assets) accounted for the highest proportion of the top 20 lists this quarter.
Figure 4: The best performing assets in each crypto sector based on risk-adjusted returns
We believe thatThere are four major themes that have performed outstandingly recently:
(1) Digital Asset Library (DAT):Last quarter, DAT numbers surged: listed companies held cryptocurrencies on their balance sheets and acted as investment vehicles for equity investors.Among the top 20 tokens, several may benefit from the creation of new DATs, including ETH, SOL, BNB, ENA and CRO.
(2) Adoption of stablecoins:Another important theme in the last quarter was the legislation and adoption of stablecoins.On July 18, President Trump signed the GENIUS Act, a new bill that provides a comprehensive regulatory framework for U.S. stablecoins (see previous article by Bitchain VisionThe future of stablecoins and payments》).After the bill passed, stablecoin adoption accelerated, with supply in circulation growing by 16%, reaching more than $290 billion (Figure 4).The main beneficiaries are smart contract platforms custodial stablecoins, including ETH, TRX and AVAX—where AVAX’s stablecoin transaction volume has increased significantly.Stablecoin issuer Ethena (ENA) also received strong price returns, although its USDe stablecoins do not meet the requirements of the Stablecoin Act (USDe is widely used in decentralized finance, while Ethena has launched a new stablecoin that complies with the Stablecoin Act).
Figure 5: Stablecoin supply growth this quarter, Ethereum leads to rise
(3) Exchange trading volume increases:Exchanges are another major theme, with centralized exchange trading volume hitting new highs since January in August (Chart 5).The increase in transaction volume appears to benefit several assets associated with centralized exchanges, including BNB, CRO, OKB and KCS, all of which are in the top 20 (in some cases, these assets are also linked to smart contract platforms).
(4) At the same time, decentralized perpetual contracts continue to maintain strong momentum(Please refer to the previous article of Bitcoin VisionThe Rise of DEX》).Hyperliquid, the leading perpetual contract exchange, grew rapidly, ranking in the top three in fee revenue this quarter.Smaller competitor DRIFT has ranked among the top 20 in the cryptocurrency industry after a significant increase in trading volume.Another decentralized perpetual contract agreement, ASTER, launched in mid-September, grew from a market capitalization of $145 million to $3.4 billion in just one week.
Figure 6: CEX perpetual contract trading volume hits its highest level this year in August
In Q4 2025, the returns of the crypto sector may be driven by a range of unique themes.
first,After the House of Representatives received bipartisan support in July,Relevant U.S. Senate committees have begun to formulate legislation on crypto market structure.This represents comprehensive financial services legislation for the cryptocurrency industry and may serve as a catalyst for its deep integration with the traditional financial services industry.
Secondly, the US SEC has approved the general listing standard for commodities-based exchange-traded products (ETPs).This could lead to an increase in the amount of crypto assets available to U.S. investors through the ETP structure.
Finally, the macro environment may continue to evolve.Last week, the Fed approved a 25 basis point rate cut and suggested two more rates could be cut later this year.With other conditions unchanged, crypto assets are expected to benefit from the Fed’s rate cut (as interest rate cuts reduce the opportunity cost of holding interest-free currencies and can support investors’ risk appetite).
at the same time,U.S. labor market weakness, rising stock market valuations and geopolitical uncertainty, may be regarded as a source of downside risks in the fourth quarter.
