STATE OF CRYPTO 2025: THE YEAR CRYPTO WENT MAINSTREAM

Summary from the TLDR Crypto newsletter

The crypto market, driven by institutional adoption from BlackRock, Visa, PayPal, and Stripe, crossed $4 trillion for the first time with 40-70 million active users. Bitcoin and Ethereum ETPs now hold over $175 billion (up 169% year-over-year). Stablecoins processed $46 trillion in annual transaction volume, rivaling Visa and exceeding PayPal's throughput by 5x, with stablecoin issuers now holding over $150 billion in US Treasuries as the #17 largest holder. Blockchain infrastructure scaled to 3,400 transactions per second (100x growth in five years), with transaction costs dropping to under one cent on Ethereum L2s, while US regulatory clarity arrived through the GENIUS Act and CLARITY Act, establishing frameworks for stablecoins and digital asset oversight.