The cryptocurrency market has been ending the year 2025 on a high note with a record M&A of $8.6 billion, a major jump from the $2.17 billion recorded in 2024.
As reported by the Financial Times, this growth is part of a year that has been defined by "shifting policy dynamics in Washington and an appetite for licensed crypto infrastructure". The Trump administration's receptive attitude towards digital assets has also been cited as contributing to this growth, especially in light of "the passage of the GENIUS Act, which created a stablecoin regulatory framework and allowed institutions to settle tokenized assets".
In total, the sector recorded 267 deals in the current year, up by 18 percent from 2024. Among the notable deals was the record-breaking Coinbase's acquisition of derivatives exchange company Deribit, which was valued at $2.9 billion. This is the biggest completion in the crypto space.
Kraken acquired the retail trading platform "NinjaTrader" in a deal worth $1.5 billion. Ripple acquired the prime brokerage company “Hidden Road” in an acquisition worth $1.25 billion. Kraken's acquisition of "NinjaTrader" and Ripple's acquisition of "Hidden Road" illustrate the trend of vertical integration in the cryptocurrency market.
Besides the policies in the US, other regulatory and legal trends around the world are also pushing the growth of deal-making. As the regulatory requirements, such as stablecoin regulation and the EU's MiCA framework, are increasingly adopted, firms are turning to acquisitions of firms with existing licenses in order to hasten their entrance into the market.
The M&A wave has been occurring in tandem with a resurgence in activity in the public markets. A total of eleven crypto firms have collectively raised $14.6 billion in listings this year, cementing the notion that digital asset companies are looking ahead to growth in the structured financial environment.
As the regulatory infrastructure develops and participation by institutions continues to evolve, one of the characteristics that is expected within the crypto space in its next phase of evolution is that of a continued trend of consolidation.
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