The global crypto market rose to $2.5 trillion on March 24, posting a 3.5% gain over 24 hours, while total trading volume reached $129.5 billion. Prices moved higher, but sentiment stayed fragile. The Fear & Greed Index improved only to 11, which still places the market in extreme fear.
Bitcoin and Ethereum led the market higher
Bitcoin and Ethereum remained the main drivers of the rebound. BTC held a market dominance of 56.6%, while ETH accounted for 10.4%. One data set in the source showed Bitcoin at $70,762.5, up 4.05% in 24 hours, with $50.43 billion in trading volume and a market capitalization of about $1.41 trillion. Another update listed BTC at $70,525.25, up 3.95%, with volume at $50.61 billion.
Ethereum was quoted at $2,145.6, rising 4.13% over 24 hours, with $28 billion in trading volume and a market capitalization of roughly $259 billion. A separate snapshot placed ETH at $2,139.88, up 4.38%, with volume at $28.13 billion. Other large-cap tokens also advanced: XRP gained 2.74% to $1.41, Solana climbed 5.34% to $90.79, and Chainlink rose 4.07% to $9.05.
LayerZero topped gainers while River led losses
Among the strongest 24-hour performers, LayerZero (ZRO) traded at $2.22 after a 14.63% jump, with trading activity of $94.60 million. Aptos (APT) rose 12.23% to $1.05, and Bittensor (TAO) added 12.15% to $297.97. The source also identified the Polkadot ecosystem and the XRP Ledger ecosystem as the leading gainers by sector.
On the downside, River (RIVER) fell 21.27% to $23.77, with about $66.94 million in trading activity. Kaspa (KAS) dropped 3.77% to $0.03486, and Ethena (ENA) slipped 3.65% to $0.09258.
Bitlayer crash, Aave V4 proposal, and MoonPay wallet update
Several project-specific developments stood out during the session. Bitlayer (BTR) fell nearly 78% in 24 hours to $0.041. The source said the project had backing from investors including Polychain and Franklin Templeton, with $25 million invested.
Aave was reported to have a proposal to deploy V4 on Ethereum, using a Hub and Spoke model aimed at improving risk management, liquidity handling, and collateral support over time. MoonPay introduced the Open Wallet Standard, described as allowing AI agents to manage crypto assets, sign transactions, and operate across Ethereum, Solana, and Bitcoin networks.
In institutional and token-related updates, ParaFi raised a new $125 million risk fund, bringing its 2025 total to $325 million, while digital investment assets were listed at $2 billion. The source also said 88.5% of the SIREN token supply is controlled by one entity, which it said could be associated with DWF Labs.
Fear remains elevated despite the market bounce
Sentiment data showed only a mild improvement. The Fear & Greed Index moved from 8 a day earlier to 11, still far below the 28 recorded a week ago. In other market segments, stablecoins posted a 0.1% negative change over 24 hours, with a combined market capitalization of $310.7 billion and trading volume of $106 billion. The DeFi market rose 1.1%, reaching $51.2 billion in market capitalization and $4.5 billion in volume, with global dominance at 2.1%.
Compared with March 23, the market shifted from a 1.5% decline and a total capitalization of $2.41 trillion to a 3.5% daily rise and $2.5 trillion in total value. Even so, the source showed that sharp token swings and weak sentiment were still part of the picture.