The cryptocurrency world hosted an interesting landscape in the second quarter of 2024. Coinbase‘s institutional division and crypto intelligence firm Glassnode’s joint report highlights that the cryptocurrency market continued to remain robust and showed signs of growth despite price consolidation.
Price Consolidation and Market Resilience Are Encouraging
After significant price increases in the first quarter, the market moved within a narrow price range in the second quarter. This consolidation period indicates a phase of market indecision. However, broad market indicators suggest that cryptocurrencies have healthy long-term growth potential. The report states that price correction is a natural part of the market cycle and supports this view with strong trading volumes, continuous new investor entries, and regulatory advancements.
Another notable point in the report is the increase in on-chain activities on the Ethereum network and Layer-2 solutions. A 127% increase was observed in the average daily active addresses on Ethereum and Layer-2 networks. This growth stems from increased activities in scalable solutions and shows a 59% increase in transaction volume within the Ethereum ecosystem. These data indicate the expanding use cases of Ethereum in the DeFi and NFT areas.
MVRV Ratio and Market Sentiment
The report also highlights the importance of monitoring the market value to realized value (MVRV) ratio. Glassnode’s chief analyst James Check notes that periods when the MVRV ratio trades above the 365-day average typically align with strong upward trends. This metric is considered a critical indicator to determine whether the market is overheated or undervalued.
Another remarkable finding is the decrease in correlations between cryptocurrencies in the second quarter. This divergence in asset correlations is interpreted as a sign of a healthier and more diversified market. Coinbase’s head of institutional research David Duong states that this trend has increased portfolio diversification.
Despite the positive outlook, the report also highlights the security issues faced by the cryptocurrency market. According to Immunefi’s data, losses from hacks and scams reached $509 million in the second quarter of 2024, representing a 91% increase compared to the same period last year. However, a decrease in losses observed between May and June indicates an improvement in security measures.