Plummeting spot trading volumes, down nearly 90% from October highs, are driving steep exchange stock losses and could signal either a market bottom or further declines.
Over the last three months, crypto exchange stocks have dropped massively due to the collapse in trading activity on centralized platforms, leaving questions about whether the industry is almost at the bottom of another decline or is just entering the most challenging phase yet.
Stocks of large exchange operators are low by 40-60% since October, as the market traces a dramatic drop in spot trading volumes that has wiped out much of the historic gains made earlier last year.
Newhedge data indicate that centralized exchange spot trade volumes were the highest in January 2025 and then in October, when the overall monthly activity rose to approximately $2.3 trillion.
Crypto Spot Volume Falls Nearly 90% From October Peak
Binance transacted nearly $1 trillion in October, over 40% of all volume, before total spot trading across exchanges plunged to about $1.7 trillion in November.
Trading continued to decline, reaching $1.2 trillion in December and plummeting to $120-150 billion in January 2026, nearly 90% less than in October.
Binance was the biggest exchange, with only $70 billion to $80 billion in trades, with the vast majority of other exchanges only registering in single- to low-two-digit billions.
