Bitcoin Tops 124K but Altcoins, DeFi Shine in Q3 2025
Bitcoin failed to top the list of best-performing assets in the third quarter of 2025, despite a significant recovery from April lows. Meanwhile, altcoins shone, and certain DeFi categories showed strength, with decentralized perpetual futures exchanges leading the way.
Bitcoin's price increase of around 65% since April, reaching about 124,000 USD, was outshone by altcoins. Factors such as rising US Treasury yields, attractive fiat dollars, and known risks like high valuations and market concentration contributed to Bitcoin's underperformance. Despite this, Bitcoin's market dominance remains significant, with a current price of Rp 1.938.623.591, a market cap of Rp 38.676 Triliun, and a trading volume of Rp 1.037 Triliun.
The quarter saw certain categories within decentralized finance (DeFi) showing strength, particularly decentralized perpetual futures exchanges like Hyperliquid (HYPE) and Drift (DRIFT). Altcoins provided the best returns, with seven of the top-performing tokens coming from the Financials segment and five from Smart Contract Platforms. Assets that made the list were driven by thematic narratives around new functionality and regulatory clarity. Rising volumes on centralized exchanges benefited tokens like BNB and CRO, while the growth of Digital Asset Treasuries (DATs) and stablecoins drove demand on platforms such as Ethereum, Solana, and Avalanche. BNB Chain, Prometheus, and Avalanche topped the list of best-performing assets on a risk-adjusted basis.
The digital asset market continues to be dominated by tokens used in financial applications and smart contract platforms. Despite Bitcoin's suboptimal performance, the market remains dynamic, with altcoins and specific DeFi categories driving growth. The trends of increased trading volumes, stablecoin adoption, and DAT management are expected to continue shaping the market in the coming quarters.
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