Crypto exchange volume witnessed a notable downturn in November, plummeting to $1.59 trillion—the lowest since June. This represented a sharp 26.7% decrease from October’s $2.17 trillion, as highlighted by The Block’s data dashboard. The month marked a period of consolidation within the crypto markets, as trading activity cooled significantly.
Centralized Exchanges: Volume Plummets
Binance maintained its status as the largest exchange by volume, processing $599.34 billion in November. Despite this, the figure marked a substantial decline from October’s $810.44 billion. Other notable centralized exchanges also experienced reduced activity; Bybit recorded $105.8 billion, while Gate.io and Coinbase saw $96.75 billion and $93.41 billion, respectively.
Vincent Liu, CIO of Kronos Research, commented on the trend, stating, “Centralized exchange spot volumes slid as the market moved from October’s frenzy to November’s flatness, with volatility vanishing and momentum mellowing. Most of the drop came from post-rally profit taking and compressed conditions—a classic case of traders cooling after a crowded climb.”
Decentralized Exchange Volume Decline
The decentralized exchange (DEX) market mirrored the downturn, with trading volume falling to $397.78 billion in November from October’s $568.43 billion, according to DefiLlama data. Uniswap led the DEX sector with $79.98 billion, down from $123.88 billion, while PancakeSwap followed with $70.57 billion compared to $102.02 billion the previous month.
The DEX-to-CEX volume ratio also fell to 15.73% in November from 17.56% in October, indicating a market shift back toward centralized exchanges. Liu elaborated, “The drop in the DEX-to-CEX ratio was driven less by sentiment and more by structure. November’s thinner trading ranges favored CEXs, where deeper liquidity and tighter spreads made execution more efficient. Meanwhile, shrinking speculative flows and softer DeFi incentives slowed DEX turnover, reinforcing the rotation.”
Market and ETF Insights
The broader crypto market saw declines in November, with bitcoin plummeting from around $110,000 at the start of the month to a low near $81,000 by November 21. As of 11:20 p.m. ET on the month’s final Sunday, bitcoin stood at $86,500—a 4.6% drop over 24 hours, according to The Block’s price page.
Additionally, spot bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs) experienced outflows exceeding inflows in November. U.S. spot bitcoin ETFs saw $3.48 billion in net outflows compared to October’s $3.42 billion in net inflows, marking the largest monthly outflow since February.
As the crypto landscape continues to evolve, these shifts in crypto exchange volume and market dynamics highlight the sector’s ongoing volatility and the changing preferences of traders and investors.
Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only and is not intended as legal, tax, investment, financial, or other advice.
