The UK
cryptocurrency market is not only one of the largest in the world, but also the
fastest growing. According to data presented by Statista, it is expected to be
worth $1.89 billion in 2023, rebounding more than 125% from cyclical lows that
the broad digital asset industry recorded last year.
US Remains Crypto Leader,
but the UK Grows Faster
Current
forecasts project that revenue generated by the US cryptocurrency market will
reach $17.36 billion in 2023, making it the largest in the world. In 2023, the
industry saw its first-ever decline in revenue, including in the United States,
sliding from $12.93 billion in 2021 to $8.63 billion reported in 2022.
However,
the end of the cryptocurrency winter, a prolonged decline in the valuations of
major digital assets, has meant that miners, investors, and crypto
entrepreneurs can again look forward to sizable gains in 2023.
The UK is
in second place after the United States, as mentioned in the introduction, with
a projected revenue of $1.89 billion and the highest year-on-year (YoY) growth
rate among the five largest cryptocurrency economies. Third place goes to
Germany with a YoY growth rate of 72% and projected revenue of $1.61 billion,
followed by Canada in fourth place (projected revenue of $1.42 billion, which is up
107.5% YoY), and Japan in fifth place (projected revenue of $1.37 billion, which is up
108.7% YoY).
The global
cryptocurrency industry’s total revenue was $18.52 billion in 2022, after a
sharp decline from the record $31.91 billion in 2021. However, the crypto sector is projected to earn nearly
$38 billion in 2023 and profit around $65 billion in 20217.
The Dominance of Crypto Is
Growing
According
to Statista, in 2022, the dominant cryptocurrency exchange globally was
Binance, which accounted for 28% of the total market share (12% belonged to
Huobi, 9% to Coinbase, and 7% to Kucoin). A number of smaller platforms from
different parts of the world held an 18% share.
This
information was confirmed by an independent report presented by CryptoCompare
in February 2023 on spot market share. According to the data, Binance’s
dominance was even more significant at 61.8%. The controversy and problems surrounding the BUSD stablecoin have hardly affected the results realized by the trading
platforms.
The number
of cryptocurrency users has also grown rapidly over the past few years. In 2020, there were 74 million users, 2021, 300 million, 2022, 430
million. And, in 2023, the value is projected to reach 673 million and exceed the
one billion milestone in 2027.
The market’s
continued growth is evidenced by the increase in the amount of money that
goes into lobbying activities. According to the Money Mongers report, their
value has increased by 922% over the past six years to $25 million. However, in
this case, the leader was not Binance but the Coinbase exchange. It spent the
most funds on lobbying in 2022, as much as $3.4 million.
It does not
change the fact that the industry’s rapid growth may be blocked by troubling moves
from the US, where regulators and politicians are taking more legislative steps
that could adversely affect the digital assets niche. Democrat Senator
Elizabeth Warren has stated that she is “building an anti-crypto
army.” Meanwhile, the CFTC, has sued Binance, claiming that the
derivatives offered by the exchange are illegal in the US.
This article was written by Damian Chmiel at www.financemagnates.com.
