Centralized exchange reverse two quarters of spot trading decline, surge 31% in Q3 2025

Crypto spot trading on centralized exchanges (CEXs) rebounded by more than 30% in the third quarter of 2025, reversing a slump from Q2 amid strong spot crypto ETF inflows and an uptick in Bitcoin dominance.

According to an analysis published by TokenInsight on Friday, total spot trading volume in the top 10 CEXs surged by 30.6% in the third quarter to $4.7 trillion. The recovery came against the backdrop of declines in two consecutive quarters and trade war concerns, which dampened market activity in the first half of 2025.

A rally in the top crypto by market cap, Bitcoin, to fresh record highs above $123,000 in August seemingly gave investors more reasons to come back to markets. TokenInsight related the jump in spot trading activity to institutional interest driven by Bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF) inflows clocking $7.8 billion during the quarter.

Crypto activity revived in Q3 after Bitcoin ATH performance

During the third quarter of 2025, Bitcoin’s dominance rose to 64% as its price fluctuated between $108,000 and $124,000 over the three-month period. The crypto market capitalization also accelerated upwards from $3.46 trillion in June to nearly $4 trillion by the end of September. 

TokenInsight’s analysis explained that the recovery was supported by expectations of looser monetary policy from the US Federal Reserve and improved regulatory clarity in markets. However, stubborn inflation from American, Asian, and European economies, combined with sluggish global growth, prevented market sentiment from leaning fully towards positivity.

“The market is expected to remain cautiously optimistic. The Federal Reserve’s rate cut and the prospect of further policy easing should support sentiment, although inflation and geopolitical risks may sustain volatility,” the market data analytics platform noted.

The renewed momentum pushed the average daily trading volume on centralized exchanges to roughly $51.6 billion. Binance took pole position as the largest CEX by trading volume, holding a 35.09% market share, the only platform to consistently control more than one-third of global spot activity.

Bitget climbed 0.31% from the previous quarter to surpass Bybit and take third place in overall market share. Gate.io and BingX both saw significant increases in their shares by 1.74% and 1.11%, respectively.

KuCoin recorded modest but steady growth, adding 0.16% quarter-on-quarter. However, OKX saw the steepest drop among major exchanges, with its share shrinking by 1.55% during the same period.

Derivatives market keeps dominance over spot trading

Despite the strong resurgence in spot trading, derivatives markets dominated centralized exchanges with a trading volume uptick of 29%, reaching $26 trillion, up from $20.2 trillion in the previous quarter. 

Much like spot trading activity, Binance led in open interest by claiming 24.61% of the total market, a 0.78% increase from Q2. Bybit and Bitget also gained 0.54% and 0.45%, respectively, as traders increasingly concentrated their activity on the top-tier exchanges. 

TokenInsight said higher volatility, improving liquidity, and better market sentiment contributed to the increased participation in futures and perpetual contracts.

Decentralized exchanges (DEXs) are still lagging behind CEXs in trading volume. However, according to DeFiLlama data, October’s total trading activity has surpassed August’s record of $762 billion, a 30% month-on-month increase.

Among the leading DEX platforms, Hyperliquid processed $317.6 billion in trades, followed by Lighter at $255.4 billion, Aster at $177.6 billion, and edgeX at $134.7 billion. 

At the current pace, decentralized perpetual exchanges are projected to close October with around $1.3 trillion in total volume, nearly double their previous record.

Exchange tokens rebound in market recovery

After a subdued second quarter, cryptocurrencies issued by trading platforms rallied strongly in Q3, buoyed by climbing trading volumes and updated platform initiatives to pull liquidity providers and retail traders.

All major exchange tokens, with the exception of LEO, outperformed Bitcoin during the quarter. OKB and CRO led the pack, soaring 281.22% and 132.42%, respectively, before paring some of their gains toward the end of September.

BNB, the native token of Binance, and KCS, issued by KuCoin, also posted steady growth supported by robust ecosystems and sustained user engagement. 

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