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Defi activity on Bitcoin and Ethereum’s technological upgrade after the merge propelled global crypto usage above 500 million, a Crypto.com report said.&nbsp;
According to the crypto exchange, cryptocurrency holders or users <a href="https://contenthub-static.crypto.com/wp_media/2024/01/Crypto-Market-Sizing-2023.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">increased</a> from 432 million to around 580 million worldwide, marking a 34% growth in 12 months following breakthroughs on the two largest blockchains.&nbsp;
The number of Bitcoin (<a href="https://crypto.news/price/bitcoin/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">BTC</a>) participants expanded by some 33%, rising from 222 million at the start of last year to nearly 300 million by December. Per the report, BTC’s adoption exploded primarily because of institutional interest and the coming of spot BTC ETFs from issuers like BlackRock.
Spot BTC ETFs <a href="https://crypto.news/sec-approves-spot-bitcoin-etf-on-accelerated-basis/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">received</a> the green light on Jan. 10 and saw billions in <a href="https://crypto.news/spot-bitcoin-etf-trueusd-btc-coinbase-sec-weekly-recap/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">trading</a> volume in the first week after trading opened.
Additionally, the rise of inscriptions and ordinals reinforced on-chain activity on crypto’s largest decentralized network. Inscriptions allow users to create assets akin to Ethereum NFTs and ERC-20 tokens on Bitcoin’s blockchain.
You might also like: <a href="https://crypto.news/grayscale-ceo-most-spot-bitcoin-etfs-will-not-survive/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow"> Grayscale CEO: Most spot Bitcoin ETFs will not survive </a>
BRC-20 tokens, as they are called, drew demand and scrutiny alike after debuting in the first half of 2023. CoinGecko tags this category as a $2.7 billion market, with speculators <a href="https://crypto.news/developer-asks-community-not-to-underestimate-bitcoin-ordinals/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">predicting</a> further market cap appreciation during the year.
Conversely, developers questioned the new narrative, arguing that inscriptions are a bug, and even <a href="https://crypto.news/u-s-agency-identified-bitcoin-inscriptions-as-cybersecurity-risk/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">reported</a> Bitcoin Ordinals to U.S. authorities.
Ethereum (<a href="https://crypto.news/price/ethereum/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">ETH</a>), crypto’s second-largest network and asset, saw its ownership ascend from 89 million to 124 million. This 39% increase accounted for an estimated 21% of global owners. The <a href="https://crypto.news/days-after-shanghai-ethereum-developers-readying-for-key-eip-and-deneb-upgrade/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">Shanghai upgrade</a>, which unlocked staked Ether and allowed withdrawals, is a major factor attributed to this growth.&nbsp;
The update was pivotal following Ethereum’s transition from its former proof-of-work model to a proof-of-stake design in the network’s largest technological overhaul. Ethereum’s next upgrade, <a href="https://crypto.news/dencun-upgrade-goes-live-on-ethereums-goerli-testnet/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">Dencun</a> is already in its testing phase and recently deployed on the Georli testnet.
Read more: <a href="https://crypto.news/bitcoin-vs-ethereum-a-comprehensive-comparison/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow"> Bitcoin vs. Ethereum: a comprehensive comparison </a>

Crypto usage grew 34% in 2023; Bitcoin, Ethereum major catalysts

crypto.news

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