The crypto industry in 2024 was marked by new record-breaking highs and a flood of institutional participation fueled by ongoing regulatory progress.
Luno shares its 2024 highlights:
ETFs and the continued rise of digital assets in traditional portfolios
2024 marked a significant shift in institutional adoption of cryptocurrency, with major financial institutions like JPMorgan Chase, Goldman Sachs, and others ramping up crypto-related initiatives. Traditional asset managers, who were once skeptical, are now actively integrating digital assets into the mainstream financial ecosystem.
Among the key developments in 2024 was the approval of Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs) in January, making it much easier and more attractive for funds to diversify their activities into cryptocurrency. Multiple ETFs gained approval from the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), marking the first time such investment products were cleared for launch in the US. Bitcoin ETFs now have assets of approximately $113-billion.
Bitcoin halving and all-time highs
Historically, the Bitcoin halving has been the catalyst for pushing the asset past previous all-time highs. However, in 2024, Bitcoin defied this trend by surpassing its prior all-time high in March, fueled by the optimism surrounding ETF approval.
Traditionally, the halving event – occurring roughly every four years – reduces the mining reward, cutting the supply of Bitcoin and adding an anti-inflationary effect.
While the halving has often sparked a bullish momentum, leading to significant price increases, 2024 saw Bitcoin take a different path. After the initial surge, the largest digital asset by market cap experienced a relatively flat performance for much of the year, only to break out again in November.
Regulation increases legitimacy
Regulators globally have made significant strides in establishing frameworks that foster the responsible growth of the crypto industry. In South Africa, crypto asset service providers (CASPs) like Luno were officially recognised as financial service providers in 2024.
The Trump effect
President-elect Donald Trump made crypto an important element of his campaign strategy, pledging to create a “strategic bitcoin reserve” and to position the US as the “crypto capital of the planet.”
Since his election, Trump has seemingly kept his pledges by nominating pro-crypto figures to several key federal roles, fueling optimism among crypto supporters. Most impactfully, Trump has nominated Paul Atkins to chair the Securities and Exchange Commission. Atkins, who was SEC commissioner between 2002 and 2008, is considered supportive of the cryptocurrency industry and has been a member and co-chair of the Chamber of Digital Commerce’s Token Alliance, a blockchain trade association, since 2017.