The crypto market started last week with a lot of hope, as many investors anticipated a potential “Christmas Rally” for Bitcoin. On Christmas Day, Bitcoin attempted to push toward the $100,000 mark, but the excitement didn’t last long as sellers quickly took over.

This bearish trend wasn’t limited to Bitcoin. Other major cryptocurrencies like Ethereum, Solana, and XRP also saw similar patterns. As 2024 comes to an end, the recent downturn has cast doubt over the once-thriving digital asset sector.

A fresh update from market analytics firm Santiment highlighted an interesting trend in the crypto market during these final days of 2024. They pointed out that overall trading activity across different crypto sectors has been steadily dropping. In fact, data revealed that trading volume fell by a significant 64% over the past week. Sectors like AI/Big Data tokens and meme coins have hit new lows in weekly trading volume.

This drop in activity is surprising given that Bitcoin had just reached a record high of $108,135 the week before. However, Santiment suggested that this slowdown was expected, particularly for speculative altcoins. They explained that the holiday season often brings quieter markets as traders focus on wrapping up their year-end finances.

Another analyst, known as Grizzly, noted a similar trend. The Coinbase Premium Index—used to measure price differences between Coinbase Pro (USD) and Binance (USDT)—has been declining. This is likely due to reduced participation in the market during the holidays and limited cash flow, both of which have contributed to price drops.

Despite this quiet period, there’s still a possibility for one last major rally before 2024 closes. Santiment mentioned that if large investors (known as whales) continue accumulating crypto, it could trigger a surprise market surge, even though retail traders are less active right now.

Currently, the total cryptocurrency market capitalization is around $3.43 trillion, down 2.2% in the last 24 hours. Even with this dip, the market is still up more than 100% for the year. No matter how 2024 ends, it’s clear that this year has been a remarkable one for the crypto world.