March 2025 in charts: Trump trade war hits Bitcoin, $22M in DeFi hacks

2 months ago

March was a unsmooth period for markets — US President Donald Trump’s uncertain tariff policies created volatility successful Bitcoin and crypto markets; meanwhile, decentralized concern (DeFi) struggled with information concerns.

Retaliatory tariffs connected US goods successful China and the European Union deed markets connected March 10 and 12, respectively. Amid the tête-à-tête betwixt the United States and its largest commercialized partners, Bitcoin managed to retrieve connected March 24 to $88,0000 earlier slumping down again to astir $82,000 astatine the clip of writing.

A fig of authorities legislatures are considering Bitcoin- and crypto-related legislation, from bills that would found a Bitcoin reserve to crypto taxation forces and exploring pension money investment. Such bills moved forward, either successful voting oregon successful committee, successful 13 US states this month.

The cool-down successful memecoin markets has large gross implications for Solana. After reaching eye-watering highs of $34 cardinal successful January, Solana volumes connected decentralized exchanges fell drastically. In March, volumes seldom exceeded $1 billion. 

Here’s March successful numbers.

Trump’s commercialized warfare sees Bitcoin down 5% connected the month

The archetypal period of Trump’s medication saw a fig of reversals connected arguable commercialized policies that seemed to confuse and exasperate adjacent the president’s governmental allies.

After a period of delay, tariffs went unrecorded connected March 4 — 25% connected Mexican and Canadian goods, 10$ connected Canadian vigor and 20% connected Chinese goods. Just 1 time later, Trump’s medication delayed tariffs for auto-makers; connected March 6, it announced delays connected astir Canadian and Mexican goods. 

Retaliatory tariffs from China raised the temperature, and connected March 12, Trump announced a 24% tariff connected aluminum and steel. By March 18, the US Treasury, portion of the statesmanlike administration, announced the anticipation of negotiable tariff rates per country.

Bitcoin price, on with large banal indexes successful the US, were deed arsenic the estimated effects of tariffs changed by the week. On March 24, Bitcoin managed to retrieve to $85,000, putting it concisely supra wherever it started the month. 

The commercialized warfare has affected the Trump family’s ain crypto investments via World Liberty Financial (WLFI). The money saw a mixed container successful March, with galore of the altcoins successful its portfolio, similar Mint (MNT) and Tron (TRX), trading astatine oregon beneath wherever they started the month. 

Crypto and accepted fiscal person been connected a downward inclination astatine the extremity of March arsenic traders brace for “Liberation Day” connected April 2, erstwhile Trump has promised to levy dollar-for-dollar tariffs connected each countries that person tariffs connected US goods.

Crypto authorities enacted successful 2 states

Two US states, Utah and Kentucky, enacted authorities successful March regarding crypto. Both laws supply definitions for antithetic aspects of integer assets and blockchain technology. They besides supply zoning definitions and protections for cryptocurrency miners and make guidelines for businesses to judge cryptocurrencies. 

In March, assorted crypto bills person moved up successful 13 different states. Three states, Texas, Georgia and Illinois, person introduced caller bills successful their respective legislatures. 

The Illinois enactment would establish regulations for the manufacture arsenic good arsenic user protections, portion Georgia senators seek to make a legislature survey committee connected integer assets and AI. 

Texas has been busy. In March alone, it introduced 3 abstracted bills that would make an oil-backed stablecoin, let authorities officials to put authorities funds successful crypto and acceptable up a blockchain aviator programme for the state’s Department of Information Resources. 

Solana ecosystem faces 99% alteration successful revenue

A fig of high-profile scandals, including 1 involving the President of Argentia Javier Milei, person begun to scare investors retired of the memecoin space. 

With astir issuances happening connected the Solana network, this exodus of traders has seen a 99% decrease successful revenues from their precocious of $15 cardinal connected Jan. 19, to conscionable $119,000 astatine publishing time. 

March besides saw a continued downtrend successful decentralized speech measurement generated onchain and regular progressive addresses. DEX volumes successful March person steadily declined from $3.9 cardinal connected March 2 to $782 cardinal astatine publishing time. 

Magazine: Memecoins are ded — But Solana ‘100x better’ contempt gross plunge

At the extremity of February, Messari expert Sunny Shi highlighted the “memecoin economy” composing overmuch of the Solana ecosystem’s value. He added that “a heavy contraction successful memecoin volumes could origin a cascade of gross declines.”

The aboriginal of memecoins remains uncertain, but Sythnetix laminitis Kain Warwick told Cointelegraph Magazine that the web is amended disconnected for them.

“One of the chill things astir the memecoin speculation is it drove a immense concern successful infrastructure connected Solana,” said Warwick. “Solana arsenic a concatenation is 100 times amended than it was pre-memecoin.”

$22 cardinal successful DeFi hacks arsenic analysts rise reddish flags implicit security

February saw the largest DeFi hack of each time, with the North Korean state-affiliated Lazarus Group nabbing $1.4 cardinal from Bybit. March pales successful examination — $22 cardinal was stolen crossed 4 hacks (note these are not the aforesaid arsenic exploits oregon abbreviated squeezes). 

Continuing the Bybit saga, hackers were reportedly able to funnel “100%” of the funds successfully — chiefly done THORChain — according to blockchain information steadfast Lookonchain.

The continued proliferation of costly DeFi hacks led blockchain sleuth ZachXBT to post on his Telegram transmission connected March 18 that DeFi “is unbelievably cooked erstwhile it comes to exploits/hacks and sadly idk if the manufacture is going to hole this itself unless the authorities forcibly passes regulations that wounded our full industry.”

He said that galore protocols person had “nearly 100%” of the monthly fees oregon volumes derived from Lazarus and “refuse to instrumentality immoderate accountability.”

Related: Top 15 crypto conferences to people your calendar successful 2025

Concerns implicit information and macroeconomic factors aside, the crypto manufacture has continued to physique and congregate astatine planetary conferences. March saw six large planetary crypto conferences successful Europe and North America.

On the whole, March was a rocky month. Major coins traded sideways oregon saw important losses — Ether (ETH) is down 18% connected the period — and economical uncertainty defined the abstraction with the instauration of caller tariffs from China and the European Union.

Markets volition beryllium enactment to the trial successful April arsenic Trump introduces wide tariffs connected April 2, dubbed “Liberation Day.” However, past reversals oregon flip-flops connected tariffs mean the effect whitethorn not beryllium arsenic pronounced arsenic predicted.

The adjacent period volition besides spot a statement connected the US stablecoin instrumentality successful the House Financial Services Committee. Many successful the manufacture respect the measure arsenic the greenish airy crypto needs to turn successful the US. 

On April 18, Avraham Eisenberg, who was convicted of fraud and marketplace manipulation successful transportation with the exploit of the Mango Markets DEX, volition look sentencing. 

Magazine: Bitcoin ATH sooner than expected? XRP whitethorn driblet 40%, and more: Hodler’s Digest, March 23 – 29

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