It was an eventful month for the cryptocurrency market following the collapse of the major stablecoin TerraUSD, and the subsequent impact on the Terra ecosystem.
Markets declined in May as Bitcoin and Ethereum closed the month at $31,782 and $1,941, falling 15.6% and 28.8% respectively. As a result, volatility increased and spot volumes on centralised exchanges rose 13.6% to $1.97tn, with a daily maximum of $148.8bn traded on the 11th of May, the day TerraUSD collapsed.
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Key takeaways:
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The crypto market experienced one of the largest month-on-month declines this May wiping out $460bn in market capitalization (data up to 26th May), with the majority of this decline occurring within a 4-day period beginning May 8th.
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The crypto markets also experienced a surge in trading volume during the collapse of TerraUSD. The five largest exchanges by volume during the 7-day period beginning May 8th were Binance, FTX, Coinbase, OKX, and Bequant. Binance traded $224bn during the week, followed by FTX, OKX, and Coinbase with $42.1bn, $37.9bn, and $33.1bn in volume, respectively, during the period.
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FTX overtook Coinbase and OKX in spot trading volume for the first time in May. FTX spot market volumes reached $89.4bn, an 80.8% increase from the month prior. Binance retained its position as the largest exchange by volume with a market share of 50.9%, trading $532bn, a 14.3% increase from April.
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BTC futures contracts in CME recorded the highest number traded since February 2021 with a volume of 250,650. Meanwhile, ETH futures contracts reached an all-time high volume with 136,165 contracts traded, rising 63.0% from April.
FTX Overtakes Coinbase and OKX in Spot Trading Volume
FTX overtook Coinbase and OKX in spot trading volume for the first time in May. FTX spot market volumes reached $89.4bn, an 80.8% increase from the month prior. Binance retained its position as the largest exchange by volume with a market share of 50.9%, trading $532bn, a 14.3% increase from April.
BTC Volume Traded Into Fiat or Stablecoin Jumps
BTC spot trading into USDT increased by 68.9% in May, to 5.37mn BTC as investors fled towards safety after the collapse of TerraUSD stablecoin. BTC spot trading into USD also saw a significant rise, jumping 103% to 1.43mn. JPY and AUD followed, rising 82.7% and 190% to 329k and 282k BTC respectively.
CME’s Derivative Contracts Rises to New Highs
CME’s monthly futures volumes across BTC and ETH contracts saw a surge in volume in May, indicating a rise in speculative activity. BTC futures contracts in CME recorded the highest number traded since February 2021 with a volume of 250,650. Meanwhile, ETH futures contracts reached an all-time high volume with 136,165 contracts traded, rising 63.0% from April.