According to a report from digital asset data company CCData, the total trading volume of all centralized cryptocurrency exchanges (CEXs) for spot and derivatives reached $9.03 trillion in January 2025, a decrease of 20.2%. This is the first decline since September 2024.
The data shows that the spot trading volume on these platforms decreased by 22.9% to $2.88 trillion, and the derivatives trading volume decreased by 18.8% to $6.15 trillion. Despite the overall decrease in trading activity, the market share of derivatives has increased for the first time in three months, rising from 67% in December to 68.1%. In addition, the total open interest of all financial instruments on CEXs increased by 8.35% to $112 billion.
The decline in trading volume occurred after increased volatility in the cryptocurrency market, and CCData associates this situation with the uncertainty following the inauguration of US President Donald Trump on January 20. The report states:
“In the weeks following Trump’s inauguration, he announced additional tariffs on China and could take similar measures against Canada and Mexico, intensifying investor uncertainty. Prior to this, cryptocurrency trading activity experienced a wave of growth after the US election in November last year, with trading volume reaching a record high of $11.3 trillion in December.”
The report from CCData indicates that Binance, the largest cryptocurrency exchange in terms of global trading volume, experienced its first decline in spot and derivatives trading volume in four months, with a decrease of 20.3% (to $754 billion) and 19.2% (to $2.44 trillion) respectively. The second-ranked platform, Bybit, also saw a decline in trading activity, with spot and derivatives trading volume dropping by 11% (to $220 billion) and 18.5% ($977 billion) respectively.
While the overall trend is downward, there are still a few platforms that have shown growth. The largest institutional trading platform, the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME), saw a growth of 8% in January, reaching a new high of $285 billion in trading volume. CCData points out that this is the fourth consecutive month of growth for CME, primarily driven by the increase in Bitcoin (BTC) futures and options trading activity. However, Ethereum (ETH) futures trading volume has declined for the first time in four months. Data source.
