The Bitcoin (BTC) rally to historical highs in February has caused a significant increase in spot trading turnover on the largest cryptocurrency exchanges. There has also been a notable reshuffle among the top platforms: thanks to a sevenfold increase compared to February 2023, ByBit is currently the second-largest exchange in terms of volume, surpassing UpBit, OKX, and Coinbase.

Crypto Spot Volumes Grows for 5 Months, ByBit Becomes the Second-Largest Exchange

Although February was a shorter month in terms of trading sessions, the dynamic Bitcoin rally and the test of historic highs above $69,000 provided tremendous fuel for the growth of trading activity indicators.

This is also evident from the spot volumes of the ten largest exchanges, whose turnover grew by 5% from the $916 billion reported in January to nearly $960 billion in February. The result marks the fifth consecutive month of growth and a significant improvement compared to February 2023. On a year-over-year (YoY) basis, volumes jumped by 22%, growing from $783 billion.

“In February, the combined spot and derivatives trading volume on centralized exchanges rose 2.28% to $4.73tn as trading activity remains at a heightened level with Bitcoin nearing new all-time highs,” CCData commented in its newest volume report.

There was also a reshuffle among the top five exchanges regarding volume. ByBit jumped to second place, growing by 16% month-over-month and an astonishing 708% YoY, reaching a volume of $97.4 billion. As a result, it overtook Upbit and OKX, whose monthly volumes slid by 13-14%. Coinbase remains in fifth place with a result of $73 billion.

“The exchange also recorded its highest-ever daily spot trading volume on February 28th, trading $8.58 billion,” CCData added.

These changes also significantly increased ByBit’s share of the entire spot trading market, which currently stands at 10%. Binance remains the undisputed leader, and its share grew by four percentage points compared to January. As a result, Binance’s turnover currently accounts for more than half of the spot market.

Annual Volume Growth for Most Exchanges

Binance is the only exchange whose volume did not grow compared to February 2023 but modestly declined (by 7%). However, other platforms record high growth rates. In addition to the ByBit mentioned above and its movement of over 700%, Huobi also saw an almost threefold increase in volume, and Bitfinex doubled.

The result increased from $13 billion to over $47 billion for Huobi, while it grew from $4 billion to nearly $9 billion for Bitfinex.

The fact that we are almost halfway through March and the Bitcoin price is still testing new historical highs above $70,000 suggests that trading volumes of the largest exchanges will also record increases this month.

In particular, inflows to new ETF funds continue to grow, and Grayscale wants to add another wave of fresh demand with its newest Mini Bitcoin Trust ETF, offering tax-free crypto exposure.

Moreover, the market eagerly awaits the halving event, which is set to take place in just over a month. In the past, halvings have caused significant price jumps for Bitcoin, and analysts are already speculating that it may soon reach six-figure values.

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