Author: Stella L ([email protected])
Data source: Footprint Analytics public chain research page
In September 2024, the blockchain industry ushered in significant growth, with the cryptocurrency market performing strongly thanks to the favorable macroeconomic environment and regulatory progress. Bitcoin’s Layer 2 performance is eye-catching, and its growth rate exceeds that of Ethereum Layer 2. In the Layer 1 field, Sui entered the top 15 by market capitalization for the first time and became the focus of attention. The Ethereum ecosystem is under scrutiny, sparking discussions about future development standards, while at the same time Bitcoin’s Layer 2 TVL (Total Value Locked) has seen a significant increase.
The data for this report comes from the public chain research page of Footprint Analytics. This page provides an easy-to-use dashboard containing the most critical statistics and indicators for understanding the public chain field, updated in real time.
Crypto markets showed strong performance in September. Bitcoin opened at $57,429 and ended the month at $63,485, a gain of 10.5%. While Ethereum has performed positively, it still lags behind Bitcoin. Ethereum started at $2,426 and ended at $2,603, a gain of 7.3%. Notably, the ETH/BTC price ratio hit a new cycle low of 0.0386 in mid-September.
Data source: Bitcoin and Ethereum price trends
Several key factors contributing to this positive market sentiment include:
Monetary Policy Shift: On September 18, the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) unexpectedly implemented a larger-than-expected 50 basis point interest rate cut. Chinese policymakers implemented macro stimulus measures later this month, providing support to global equities.
Regulatory Progress:The U.S. regulatory environment shows signs of improvement. The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has approved an application to list spot Bitcoin ETP (exchange-traded product) options, and more similar applications are expected to be approved.
Institutional Adoption: Bank of New York appears ready to offer crypto asset custody services, a move that could further solidify cryptocurrencies Legitimacy in finance.
Political Support: There are also positive changes in the political context. Former US President Trump announced a new decentralized finance (DeFi) protocol, and Vice President Harris also expressed support for digital assets and blockchain technology.
In September 2024, the total market capitalization of blockchain cryptocurrencies reached $1.9 trillion, a 6.9% increase from August. The market dominance is still occupied by Bitcoin (67.3%), Ethereum (16.8%), BNB Chain (4.5%) and Solana (3.9%). Bitcoin and BNB chains maintained their respective market shares, while Ethereum’s market share fell by 0.6% in absolute terms and Solana increased by 0.3%.
Data source: Market value of public chain tokens
Among the top 15 public chains by market value, Sui performed well, with a market value increase of 132.2%, entering the list for the first time, ranking 13th.
Data source: Price and market value of public chain tokens at the end of September 2024
The total TVL in the DeFi field reached $68.1 billion, an increase of 6.4% from August, of which Sui’s TVL increased by 67.4%.
Data source: Public chain TVL at the end of September 2024
September was a breakthrough month for Sui, thanks to the Sui Foundation’s efforts to incentivize dApp development. The NAVI protocol and Telegram game BIRDS in the DeFi space have significantly boosted on-chain activity.
At TOKEN2049 in Singapore, Vitalik Buterin highlighted the evolution of cryptocurrencies from their infancy to usability and highlighted the industry’s progress towards mass adoption. The following trends are emerging in this direction:
Web3 Gaming continues to be a key driver of blockchain mass adoption. Several networks, including TON, BNB Chain, Sui, and Aptos, have leveraged the Telegram ecosystem to expand their user base.
Stablecoins and their financial applications gain momentum. Celo’s success in Africa demonstrates the potential of stablecoins in emerging markets, while Sui announced its upcoming integration of Circle’s native USDC.
Efforts to lower barriers to entry further intensify. BNB chain has launched a “Gas-free Carnival Season”, offering zero gas fee options in specific transactions. Solana launched its Web3 smartphone terminal Solana Seeker, while Ronin launched Ronin Waypoint, a universal account and keyless wallet for its ecosystem.
These developments highlight the industry’s commitment to improving user experience and expanding the influence of blockchain in various fields and among different people.
In September 2024, Bitcoin Layer 2 (including sidechain) TVL increased significantly, reaching $1.5 billion, an increase of 33% from August. Core is the leader in the field with TVL of $440 million (30.5% market share), followed by Bitlayer ($390 million, 26.8%), Rootstock ($180 million, 12.3%) and Merlin ($130 million, 9.2%) ).
Data source: Bitcoin ecological public chain TVL
Core was a particularly strong performer, with TVL up more than 100% from August. This surge was largely driven by the launch of Core Ignition Drop Season 2, which expanded to include Web3 games in addition to BTCFi, significantly boosting on-chain activity. As a result, Core surpassed Bitlayer to become the largest Bitcoin scaling solution by TVL, although Bitlayer also saw a healthy 9.4% TVL growth.
Rootstock maintained its stable growth momentum, with TVL increasing by 12.5% and continuing to rank third. Other noteworthy performers include BSquared (TVL up 42.8%), Stacks (up 26.5%) and BEVM (up 6.3%).
Looking ahead, Bitcoin staking protocol Babylon has announced that Mainnet Phase-1 Cap-2 will launch in the second week of October. 1,000 BTC was quickly staked during Cap-1, creating high anticipation for the launch of Cap-2.
The Solv Protocol expands its Bitcoin staking ecosystem, providing new options for cbBTC holders on Base, and launches the high-yield SolvBTC.BBN pool in partnership with Pendle. The platform integrates with multiple DeFi protocols, bringing its total integration count to 35 blockchains and protocols. Leveraging Chainlink’s cross-chain technology and expanding to Avalanche and Base, Solv now operates on 9 blockchains. These developments, including becoming the first Bitcoin staking protocol in the Base ecosystem, highlight Solv’s growing role in expanding Bitcoin DeFi opportunities across multiple chains.
In September 2024, the TVL of Ethereum Layer 2 reached $23.2 billion (canonically bridged part), an increase of 8.31% from August, but this increase was not as strong as that of Bitcoin Layer 2.
Arbitrum One, Optimism and Base continue to dominate the TVL market share, with 48.8%, 19.7% and 8.1% respectively, little changed from the previous month. However, their total market share declined slightly, indicating the growth of other Ethereum Layer 2 solutions.
DeGate continues to perform strongly, with TVL rising 17.9% in September, continuing August's 20.6% gain. Taiko and Scroll also grew by 7.0% and 7.4% respectively. By comparison, Blast's TVL fell by 18.9%, conversely, exacerbating its 18.8% decline in August.
Data source: Ethereum Layer 2 Overview in September 2024 - Rollups (bridging related indicators)
The Ethereum ecosystem is under intense scrutiny from the community in terms of innovation and development. Vitalik Buterin responded actively on social media, addressing these concerns and outlining future directions.
An important development is that Vitalik Buterin announced on the X platform that starting in 2025, he will "only mention publicly (in blogs, talks, etc.) L2s that have reached Stage 1 and above." This demonstrates the higher standards required for Ethereum rollups solutions, emphasizing the need for Layer 2 solutions to reach “Stage 1” next year. To reach this benchmark, Rollups must improve decentralization and security, including operational proof-of-fraud or proof-of-validity schemes.
Currently, only two Rollups have reached "Stage 2": DeGate and Fuel. Three more have reached "Stage 1": Arbitrum One, Optimism and dYdX V3. This classification sets a high bar for projects within the ecosystem. This classification highlights the continued evolution and maturation of the Ethereum Layer 2 ecosystem, clearly identifying security and decentralization as key priorities for future development and recognition.
In September, the number of active games across blockchain networks increased to 1,563, an increase of 4.5% from August. Market dominance remains stable, with BNB Chain, Polygon, and Ethereum accounting for 22.0%, 18.6%, and 14.8% of the number of games respectively.
Data source: Proportion of active blockchain games in each public chain
The DAU pattern has changed significantly, with opBNB, Ronin, and Nebula (SKALE subnet) becoming the best-performing chains, with average daily DAUs of 1.1 million, 1.1 million, and 458,000 respectively. As of the end of September, these chains’ DAU shares were 28.2%, 20.1%, and 9.2% respectively.
Data source: Number of daily active users of each public chain blockchain game
opBNB has shown significant growth, with its average DAU in September surging 62.0% from August, and its market share increasing from 22.4% to 28.2% during the month. This growth was driven not only by the hit game SERAPH: In The Darkness, but also by the launch of a new game in mid-September, Elfin Metaverse, an esports gaming platform and open-world metaverse.
In contrast, Ronin's DAU share continued to decline, falling from 29.5% in August to 20.1% in September. This trend can be largely attributed to declining performance from Pixels, which dropped from over 700,000 DAUs to 470,000 during the month. It is worth noting that although Ronin’s average DAU was almost twice that of opBNB in August, opBNB overtook Ronin in September, marking an important shift in the competitive landscape.
Sui’s average daily DAU increased by 48.4% to 92,000, driven by the success of Telegram game BIRDS, which attracted a large number of users in its first week. This achievement highlights the trend of blockchain leveraging Telegram for user acquisition.
For more blockchain game industry trends, you can read "Blockchain Game Research Report for September 2024: The industry is picking up, and Telegram games are triggering a craze."
In September 2024, financing activities in the public chain field heated up, with a total of 11 financing events occurring, with a total amount of US$170 million, an increase of 47.3% from August. Among them, the specific amounts of three financing events were not disclosed.
Public chain financing events in September 2024 (data source: crypto-fundraising.info)
Two major events drove the surge in financing this month.
The Celestia Foundation announced it has raised $100 million in a funding round led by Bain Capital Crypto, bringing its total funding to $155 million. Launched in 2023, Celestia’s unique architecture separates consensus and data availability from the execution layer, providing developers of Layer 2 Rollups with greater flexibility. However, this financing announcement triggered doubts in the community, and doubts about "pump and dump" spread. Some pointed out that the announced US$100 million in financing was "actually an OTC token sale a few months ago."
Another major move was Bitget and Foresight Ventures’ $30 million strategic investment in the TON blockchain. The investment is aimed at strengthening Telegram-based projects, specifically “tap-to-earn” games such as Hamster Kombat and Notcoin.
In addition, three Layer 1 blockchains announced new financing rounds this month: Initia, Octra, and Aptos. Layer 2 solutions continue to attract investor interest, with Bitcoin Layer 2 Zulu Network and Ethereum Layer 2 RISE Chain, Kroma and t1 protocol, in addition to Hemi Network and AminoChain, all receiving funding.
____________________
The content of this article is for industry research and communication only and does not constitute any investment advice. The market is risky and investment needs to be cautious.
About Footprint Analytics
Footprint Analytics is a comprehensive blockchain data analysis platform that simplifies complex analysis for enterprises and projects in the Web3 ecosystem. It provides customized solutions that eliminate the need for extensive expertise and infrastructure maintenance. The platform provides long-term growth tools designed to help build and manage communities over time, emphasizing sustainable growth and user loyalty. By combining powerful analytics and community management tools, Footprint Analytics enables projects to effectively leverage blockchain data for decision-making and growth strategies across sectors including GameFi, NFT, and DeFi.
From December 11, 2023, TOPPAN Holdings, Inc. and Dentsu Group, Inc. are teaming up with ODK Solutions, Inc., Sony Corporation, and several other entities to introduce a groundbreaking innovation - the Web3.0 Wallet. This digital asset storage solution incorporates photorealistic avatars to revolutionise user interaction.
JoySolana Labs' co-founder, Anatoly Yakovenko, addressed the less-than-impressive sales of the company's smartphone, Saga, in an interview with Unchained Crypto on Dec 5.
AaronSotheby’s digital art division revealed plans to auction pieces from the BitcoinShrooms collection, a project crafted by artist Shroomtoshi. The collection, minted on-chain in October, is hailed as the "first-ever Ordinals collection," according to both the BitcoinShroom website and its associated account.
JoyBinance's CZ, facing money laundering charges, confronts an unplanned stay in the U.S. until sentencing.
Hui XinThere have been no details regarding the other specifics of the airdrop, though scammers have already posted multiple phishing links in response to the Twitter post.
BrianTokens that have previously been delisted in the US are also available for trading in the EU.
AlexUsers are advised to exercise caution to avoid potential risks associated with fake accounts or phishing links during this transition.
BrianHe had previously been arrested at Podgorica airport for using a fake passport, after having been on the run for about a year.
AlexThis technology aims to mitigate risks associated with manual handling of assets while maintaining a secure separation from online environments.
AlexHis co-founder Julian Hosp, however, is none too keen to allow the liquidation to happen.
Alex