2025 was Bitcoin [BTC] and Ethereum’s [ETH] coming of age era.
This year was meant to push crypto’s biggest assets into the mainstream. While there was progress on that front, BTC and ETH also confused investors, tested patience, and challenged confident predictions. The former settled into its role as the asset institutions could finally live with, while the latter spent much of the year trying to justify its financial relevance.
As the calendar turns, the question is what, if anything, actually changed heading into 2026.
2025 on the charts
Bitcoin started 2025 on shaky ground, dipped horribly by March, and then put up a great show of recovery through the middle of the year. By October, it had pushed to new highs, with ETF inflows and demand from big players.
However, that momentum didn’t last.
Source: TradingView
A pullback in November erased weeks of gains, and Bitcoin will now end the year well below its peak, trading closer to where things look hesitant.
Source: TradingView
Ethereum took a similar route, but with lesser confidence. After an early-year slump, ETH rallied hard into late summer, making a proper comeback. That move faded quickly when selling pressure returned in Q4, dragging Ethereum back towards the lower end of its yearly range.
Unlike Bitcoin, ETH struggled to hold on to its gains.
Nic Puckrin, investment analyst and co-founder of The Coin Bureau, agreed with this assessment.
“It was meant to be the year of crypto, yet Bitcoin is struggling to hold $90,000 as we head into Christmas, while gold and silver have skyrocketed to new highs, and continue to do so.”
ETFs in 2025
ETFs played a much bigger role this year, especially Bitcoin. Spot Bitcoin ETFs saw great inflows during the first half of the year, helping prices push back from weakness and pushing BTC towards its mid-year and October highs.
Source: SoSoValue
Even when the prices pulled back later in the year, total assets held by these ETFs stayed elevated.
This meant that long-term holders were largely staying put, even if momentary interest wobbled.
Source: SoSoValue
Ethereum’s ETF story was far less shiny though. Inflows picked up around mid-year, briefly in tandem with ETH’s summer rally. However, that demand was fragile. By the final quarter, Ethereum’s ETF charts had consecutive streaks of red, on the back of the token’s price decline and weaker market conditions.
Total assets fell faster than Bitcoin’s, so there’s a big gap in confidence with both assets. Heading into 2026, this gap will decide how the market views both assets.
According to Puckrin,
“It was also the year that saw BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust ETF (IBIT) become one of the most successful launches of all time, while several altcoin ETFs were approved and have seen strong demand.”
He went on to add,
“Sometimes, during sell-offs, it can be hard to see the forest for the trees. But if we zoom out, even $90,000 Bitcoin was the stuff of dreams just a few short years ago.”
Funnily enough, they’re both backmarkers!
While silver and gold gained massively, BTC and ETH went in the opposite direction. Bitcoin is down around 6% at the time of writing, Ethereum fell nearly 12%, and the broader altcoin market was hit the hardest, sinking more than 40%.
About the performance of big metals, Puckrin said,
“What has been particularly unexpected, however, is the stellar performance of precious metals – specifically gold and silver, which are up 66% and over 130% year-to-date.”
Source: X
Even traditional equity benchmarks outperformed – Nasdaq, the S&P 500, and small-cap stocks all posted solid gains.
Crypto clearly lagged behind almost every major asset class. This year, capital favored stability, cash flow, and tangible value. Crypto, the obvious and skeptic high-growth bet, spent the year on the relative sidelines.
What really mattered this year?
For Bitcoin, the past 12 months were about becoming stronger. As mentioned earlier, Spot ETFs became a constant source of demand. The post-halving drop in new supply made Bitcoin harder to find. Clearer U.S regulations also made it easier for institutions to hold BTC and explain why they own it.
At the same time, rising government debt and fiscal pressure brought back Bitcoin’s appeal as a hedge. Long-term holders bought into that idea, adding to positions even during times when BTC looked boring or unattractive.
Ethereum’s year followed a different path, focused on what the network can do. Two major upgrades (Pectra in May and Fusaka in December) improved performance, lowered costs, and increased capacity. Gradual gas limit increases showed progress. Clarity around staking also gave certainty.
Institutions finally went from theory/experimentation to practice. Tokenized funds, stablecoins, and ETFs all grew, while Layer 2 networks handled most transactions. This made Ethereum cheaper and easier to use at scale.
While the native token price was nothing to write home about, the network itself has proved just how much depends on it.
2026 – The response year?
Bitcoin may be bruised, but it’s certainly not broken. Its underperformance versus equities has been glaring, but that gap is exactly what some see as opportunity.
As David Schassler of VanEck puts it,
“Bitcoin is lagging the Nasdaq 100 Index by roughly 50% year-to-date, and that dislocation is setting it up to be a top performer in 2026.”
What’s important is that nothing fundamental snapped this year. While risk appetite took a hit, belief still remains the same.
That matters because,
“Today’s weakness reflects softer risk appetite and temporary liquidity pressures, not a broken thesis…”
The patterns back this view. When liquidity is tight, Bitcoin stalls. When it returns, Bitcoin tends to move fast.
Ethereum’s outlook for the new year may be tamer, but just as important. Its growth is now tied more to usage, what with stablecoins, tokenization, L2 activity, and real institutions building on it.
Overall, there are no promises for easy upside. However, if you’re patient, you may just see your hopes pay off.
Until then, happy holidays! We’ll see you in the new year.
Final Thoughts
- Bitcoin is ending 2025 bruised, but stronger.
- Ethereum underperformed on the price front, but network usage made it more critical than ever.