Crypto’s “Best Quarter” Didn’t Show Up: Q4 2025 Wiped $1T As Bitcoin Slid And Institutions Split

Q4 2025 broke crypto’s long-standing seasonal script. Instead of a year-end rally, the market sold off hard, dragging the total crypto market cap down to roughly $2.9 trillion. It pushed Bitcoin from October highs into the low-$80,000s. The new 99Bitcoins Q4 2025 State of Crypto Market Report, in collaboration with Crypto.com, frames the move as a risk-off “distributions” quarter – high volume, falling prices, and cautious positioning across spot ETFs and derivatives.

According to the report, “Investors this quarter were more focused on preserving their capital than trying to trade the market.” In 99Bitcoins’ estimate, total crypto market cap fell 25-27% quarter-on-quarter – one of the steepest QoQ drops of the year.

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So What Actually Drove The Sell-Off In Q4 2025?

Bitcoin’s correction followed all-time highs in October 2025. It was a rapid slide from around $126,000 to the low $80,000 range. However, the report argues that the decline happened with elevated trading volumes – often signifying a late-cycle distribution rather than a quiet drift lower. Macro sensitivity also dominated late Q4, with price action reacting to US inflation prints and broader risk appetite. All this kept traders defensive.

“Although BTC ETFs had previously attracted strong institutional flows earlier in the year, Q4 saw ETF outflows accelerate, and futures open interest remained high even as prices fell,” the report said.

“Digital Asset Treasury” firms expanded holdings with Bitcoin comprising the majority share of their reported crypto NAV.

Explore: 99Bitcoins’ Q4 2025 State of Crypto Market Report

Under-the-hood shifts: Stablecoins, DEX Share, Derivatives Leverage

Even as prices fell, stablecoins continued cementing their role as crypto’s transactional backbone, representing 30% of on-chain transaction volume and surpassing $4trillion year-to-date volume in 2025, according to the report.

“This surge in stablecoin usage has directly fueled growth in crypto-collateralized lending, which reached a new all-time high by the end of Q3 2025, overtaking the previous peak set in Q4 2021,” the report said.

Structural market share also kept migrating: the DEX-to-CEX spot trade ratio rose toward the low-20% range by end-2025.

And what does all of this set up for 2026? The report’s base case is not “straight up.” It’s a market that may see steadier growth if institutional adoption and regulatory clarity improve.

But at the moment, any push above $95,000 seems like a gift. If it does, the resulting momentum could easily propel the BTC USD price well above the psychological $100,000 mark. Considering the positive correlation between BTC and some of the altcoins, expect some quality tokens to soar in the process. This is what some analysts expect to happen in the next few weeks, if not days.

Explore: Bitcoin BTC USD Price Eyes $100K on Wall Street Buying

Key Takeaways

The 99Bitcoins report pointed out that trading activity remained strong, with total volume reaching $887.3 billion over the past 30 days. Michael Saylor’s Strategy continued to dominate the landscape, holding an unmatched 660,624 BTC.

“Bitcoin significantly outperformed altcoins over the year. In the first half, many investors expected an altcoin season, with capital rotating out of Bitcoin and into altcoins, but this shift never occurred.”