The total crypto market posted its weakest quarter since 2022, shedding more than 20 per cent of its value, while stablecoin supply remained above $300 billion.
- The total crypto market posted its weakest quarter since 2022, shedding more than 20 per cent of its value, while...
- According to CoinGecko’s Q1 2026 Crypto Industry Report, total market capitalisation fell 20.4 per cent, a $622 billion loss, to...
- Stablecoin liquidity holds firm Stablecoin supply rose about $8 billion to a record $315 billion in Q1 2026, according to CEX.IO...
- Circle’s USDC picked up some of that flow, growing 2.4 per cent to $77.1 billion.
Keep reading for the full breakdown on Bitcoin — everything you need to know is covered below.
According to CoinGecko’s Q1 2026 Crypto Industry Report, total market capitalisation fell 20.4 per cent, a $622 billion loss, to end March at $2.4 trillion, roughly 45 per cent below its October 2025 peak.
Bitcoin declined 22 per cent during the quarter, underperforming the Nasdaq and S&P 500, which fell 7.1 per cent and 4.8 per cent, respectively. The contraction followed a sustained downtrend that began in late 2025, marking two consecutive quarters of decline.
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Stablecoin liquidity holds firm
Stablecoin supply rose about $8 billion to a record $315 billion in Q1 2026, according to CEX.IO data. The increase was the slowest growth since Q4 2023, yet it came in a quarter when the broader crypto market contracted.
Stablecoins captured 75 per cent of total crypto trading volume in Q1, the highest share on record, surpassing the previous peak set in 2022.
Meanwhile, Tether’s USDT recorded its first supply decline since Q2 2022, shedding $3 billion (1.6 per cent) to end at $184.1 billion.
Circle’s USDC picked up some of that flow, growing 2.4 per cent to $77.1 billion. Newer entrants saw double-digit growth: Sky’s USDS surged 30.8 per cent following its Sky Agents launch, while WLFI’s USD1 jumped 32.5 per cent after a Binance airdrop campaign.
Centralised exchange spot trading volume among the top 10 venues plunged 39.1 per cent quarter-on-quarter to $2.7 trillion, down from $4.5 trillion in Q4 2025.
March stands as the “weakest month,” according to CoinGecko, with $800 billion in trading volume, the lowest since November 2023.
Crypto market worsened after a major announcement
The market worsened after Kevin Warsh was nominated as US Federal Reserve chair, which signalled “a potential hawkish shift in US monetary policy,” CoinGecko said.
Daily trading activity saw average daily volume of $117.8 billion, down 27 per cent from Q4 2025.
But total stablecoin transaction volume for the quarter exceeded $28 trillion, extending a multi-year trend in which stablecoin volumes have outpaced those of major payment networks, including Visa and Mastercard combined.
Retail-sized transfers fell 16 per cent in Q1, the steepest quarterly drop on record, while bots accounted for approximately 76 per cent of all stablecoin transaction volume during the period.
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