Bitcoin continues to maintain its role as the market anchor asset in July, reaching a new record high of $123,000. However, the performance of this currency coincides with a significant shift in market structure as investment flows heavily into altcoins.

According to market insights shared by Binance Research, Bitcoin's dominance has decreased by 5.2% to 60.6%. During the same period, altcoin dominance has risen to 39.2%, which is one of the largest monthly growth rates in 2025.

This rotation is supported by improved macroeconomic sentiment, optimism surrounding the potential interest rate cuts by the U.S. Federal Reserve, and the absence of market-disrupting events.

ETH Becomes the Preferred Currency for Corporations

Leading this change is Ethereum, with a 51% growth in the month, thanks to record participation from institutions. The ETH treasury of companies has increased by 127.7% to over 2.7 million ETH, accounting for nearly half of the holdings of U.S.-listed ETH ETFs. In July, 24 companies added ETH to their balance sheets and opted for direct ownership instead of ETFs to benefit from staking rewards and Ethereum's deflationary supply model.

In addition to Ethereum, several other altcoins have also recorded significant growth. XRP, SUI, Cardano (ADA), Dogecoin (DOGE), and BNB have all benefited from ecosystem developments, increased business adoption, and growing investor interest in DeFi use cases and tokenization.

This market-wide rally reflects an increasingly willing market to diversify beyond Bitcoin as sentiment towards the utility of altcoins strengthens. In the stablecoin sector, the passage of the GENIUS Act on July 17 marked a regulatory breakthrough in the U.S., introducing a federal framework for fully reserved stablecoins that comply with AML.

This development has driven widespread adoption within institutions. For example, JPMorgan has expanded its tokenized deposit pilot program, Citi has enhanced its tokenized deposit testing for cross-border payment transactions, and Visa has committed to scaling up stablecoin-based payments. The volume of on-chain stablecoin payments continues to exceed Visa's transaction throughput.

NFT Market Recovers

The NFT sector has seen a strong recovery. Binance Research found that total trading volume increased by nearly 50% in July. The leading position in sales volume belongs to Ethereum-based NFTs, which grew by 58%. Bitcoin NFTs also increased by over 28%.

The standout momentum is the surge in CryptoPunks sales, which increased by 393% following a sensational acquisition. However, NFT activity based on Polygon has declined. Industry discussions around embedding NFTs into ETF structures indicate that institutions are exploring this area at an early stage.