The combined trading volume on centralized cryptocurrency exchanges nearly doubled to a record-breaking $9.1 trillion in March, with spot trading outpacing the growth of derivatives trading.

Fintech firm Ripple is moving into the stablecoin market with the introduction of its own U.S. dollar-backed offering, in a move that positions Ripple as a competitor in a sector that the firm projected could balloon to $2.8 trillion by 2028.

Leading cryptocurrency exchange Binance has announced that it will be winding down support for Bitcoin non-fungible tokens (NFTs in a move that comes just a few months after Binance introduced Bitcoin Ordinals to its platform.

Top stories in the Crypto Roundup today:

• Crypto Trading Volume Hit New $9.1 Trillion All-Time High
• Ripple to Enter Stablecoin Market With U.S. Dollar-Pegged Token
• Binance to Drop Support for Bitcoin NFTs
• Crypto Market Movers – AIOZ, TON, RBN

Crypto Trading Volume Hit New $9.1 Trillion All-Time High in March

The combined trading volume on centralized cryptocurrency exchanges nearly doubled to a record-breaking $9.1 trillion in March, with spot trading outpacing the growth of derivatives trading.

According to CCData’s latest Exchange Review report, spot trading volumes rose 108% to $2.93 trillion, the highest monthly figure since May 2021, with leading cryptocurrency exchange Binance being able to capitalize on the market frenzy and see trading volume reach its highest level since May 2021.

The platform’s spot trading volume jumped 121% to $1.12 trillion while derivatives volumes rose by 89.7% to $2.91 trillion. Overall, spot and derivatives trading on centralized exchanges rose 92.9% last month.

Trading volumes were driven by Bitcoin’s 15% price increase in March to a record high of $73,776. The report further highlights Binance's growing market share in the spot market, with the exchange seeing its largest yearly gain and increasing its dominance by 6.21% to capture 38% of the total spot trading volume on centralized exchanges.

Institutional investor participation in the crypto market also saw a significant uptick as volume on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) reached an all-time high of $155 billion in March, reflecting a 60.6% increase.

The surge in derivatives trading volume was another noteworthy trend observed across exchanges integrated with the CCData API. This metric nearly doubled to $6.18 trillion in March, suggesting increased investor activity and speculation on the future price movements of cryptocurrencies, particularly Bitcoin, as it approached a new all-time high.

Last month, the derivatives trading volume among exchanges integrated with the CCData API also hit a new record after almost doubling to $6.18 trillion.

Ripple to Enter Stablecoin Market With U.S. Dollar-Pegged Token

Fintech firm Ripple is moving into the stablecoin market with the introduction of its own U.S. dollar-backed offering, in a move that positions Ripple as a competitor in a sector that the firm projected could balloon to $2.8 trillion by 2028.

Expected for release later this year, the yet-to-be-named stablecoin will be fully backed by a basket of reliable assets, including U.S. dollar deposits and short-term U.S. government Treasuries.

The stablecoin’s launch will occur on both the network Ripple created, the XRP Ledger, and the Ethereum blockchain, with the stablecoin adhering to the widely used ERC-20 token standard.

Its Chief Technology Officer David Schwartz said that Ripple's entry into this market underscores its focus on long-term viability rather than short-term gains. By backing its stablecoin with highly trusted assets, Ripple aims to establish itself as a reliable player in the stablecoin arena.

David Schwartz acknowledged the market opportunity but also highlighted the potential to revitalize the XRP Ledger's decentralized finance (DeFi) ecosystem. Compared to other blockchain platforms, the XRP Ledger currently sees less activity in DeFi applications.

Transparency is a central pillar of Ripple's strategy, and to ensure user trust the company is planning on conducting monthly public audits by a reputable accounting firm.

Binance to Drop Support for Bitcoin NFTs

Leading cryptocurrency exchange Binance has announced that it will be winding down support for Bitcoin non-fungible tokens (NFTs in a move that comes just a few months after Binance introduced Bitcoin Ordinals to its platform.

According to a company blog post, the changes are part of an effort to "streamline product offerings" within the Binance NFT marketplace. Effective April 18, the platform will no longer support trading or depositing Bitcoin Ordinals, with users being advised to withdraw any existing Bitcoin NFTs from the marketplace by May 18, 2024, before midnight UTC.

Furthermore, airdrops, benefits, and utilities associated with Bitcoin NFTs will no longer be offered on the Binance NFT marketplace after April 10, 2024.

Bitcoin Ordinals are a recent development that allows data, including images and text, to be directly inscribed onto the Bitcoin blockchain, effectively allowing for the creation of Bitcoin NFTs.

Crypto Market Movers – AIOZ, TON, RBN

Several tokens are leading the charge in the last 7-day period. Some of these are well-known cryptocurrencies with more liquid trading pairs, so we’ll be focusing on these over low-cap cryptos that may have higher percentage changes.

AIOZ Network (AIOZ) - AIOZ Network is a distributed CDN built on its own Blockchain. On AIOZ Network, users share redundant memory, storage and bandwidth resources to create a vast CDN capable of powering streaming platforms anywhere in the world. It aims to change the way the world streams videos.

The Open Network (TON) - The Open Network utilizes its native cryptocurrency known as TON Crystal. This decentralized token is based on the TON blockchain and plays a vital role in the functioning and governance of the entire network. Employing a multi-blockchain architecture, TON Crystal serves as the medium of exchange within the TON ecosystem. The TON blockchain is an ambitious, high-performance decentralized network designed to provide scalability and speed.

Ribbon Finance (RBN) - Ribbon Finance is a comprehensive suite of decentralized finance (DeFi) protocols. Its focus is to facilitate user access to crypto-structured products through a mix of derivatives, lending, and a proprietary on-chain options exchange known as Aevo. With this combination, Ribbon aspires to serve as a one-stop solution for those aiming to optimize their portfolios' risk-return profiles.

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State of the Crypto by Top Tier Exchange Volume

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