- Ethereum created the largest gains at $76.3 billion; bitcoin followed with $74.7 billion.
- The United States was the largest market for these realized gains, at $46.9 billion.
- Ethereum may grow even further in 2022, with more milestones coming up.
Blockchain data analytics platform Chainlaysis has published a new report on the cryptocurrency market’s performance in 2021, detailing ethereum’s gains across countries. The year was a strong one all around for the market, but ethereum, in particular, experienced an excellent period.
Chainalysis used its transaction data as well as web data to measure various elements of the crypto market, including cryptocurrency activity by country. To begin with, it measured on-chain, macro-level flows of all crypto assets it tracks. They then estimated a total collective gain made on each asset.
In terms of realized crypto gains by country, the United States was by far the runaway leader, with $46.9 billion gained in 2021. The United Kingdom and Germany followed. The report also notes that crypto performance in some countries seem to be outperforming ranking in other measures of economic prosperity.
As for total estimated gains by asset, ethereum is the winner, followed by bitcoin, which it just managed to beat. Globally, the total realized gains of ethereum was $76.3 billion, and bitcoin’s was $74.7 billion. Chainalysis marks DeFi as being one reason why ethereum fared better.
The report ends with Chainalysis noting that there are still risks in the market that need to be mitigated, though the analysis of crypto gains points to an overall growth of the crypto market.
Ethereum May Rise Even Further
Ethereum has had a good 12 months as a result of development and the DeFi market’s growth. The asset has been at the heart of some of the hottest developments in the space.
But the future maybe even brighter for ethereum as more technical upgrades are expected to arrive soon. The network integrated the merge with Kiln testnet earlier this year, and integration with the mainnet is expected by the end of 2022. Former BitMEX CEO Arthur Hayes has said that ETH could rise to $10K.
DeFi, NFTs, and P2E games are all also contributing to the Ethereum network’s growth. Naturally, the Ethereum Foundation is also a strong believer in ethereum’s potential, revealing recently that ETH accounted for 80% of its 1.61 billion treasury fund. Putting so much of its treasury into one asset showcases strong conviction — and in its own asset, no less.