- 88% distrust Binance, yet its liquidity still drives altcoin price discovery, creating systemic market risks.
- Coinbase, Kraken, and Ripple led 2025 megadeals, reshaping institutional crypto trading and hedging infrastructure.
- Circle, Bullish, and Figure IPOs highlight Wall Street’s appetite for compliant, liquid, and blockchain-driven investments.
Crypto markets are entering a pivotal moment as 2025 closes, revealing a stark contrast between exchange trust and industry growth. According to analyst MASTR, 88% of surveyed participants would not trust their money with Binance. Yet, Binance remains the leading venue for price discovery, particularly for altcoin pairs.
This contradiction underscores that, while criticism exists, the exchange’s structural influence on crypto markets persists. Massive liquidity parked on Binance continues to dictate prices, resulting in abnormal wicks, exchange-specific crashes, and liquidations triggered at prices not found elsewhere.
The risks go beyond technical glitches. Binance’s history includes repeated violations of AML and sanctions laws, $4.3 billion in fines, and the founder pleading guilty. MASTR warns that, despite claims of transparency, proof of reserves without liabilities remains “theatre.”
Custody is centralized, wallet structures opaque, and internal fund flows cannot be audited in real time. Users remain unsecured creditors if the exchange fails. Hence, trust is compromised not because Binance acts maliciously, but because its immense power and opacity create systemic risk.
Mega Acquisitions Redefine Institutional Crypto Playbook
Meanwhile, the broader crypto industry achieved record growth away from spot-market volatility. PitchBook reports $8.6 billion in deal volume in 2025, roughly four times higher than the previous year.
Regulatory clarity and Wall Street’s renewed conviction fueled this surge. Notable acquisitions included Coinbase buying Deribit for $2.9 billion, securing nearly 90% of crypto options open interest, and positioning Coinbase as a key institutional hedging platform.
Similarly, Kraken acquired NinjaTrader for $1.5 billion, obtaining a CFTC-registered license, opening crypto-native access to the $2 trillion futures market. Ripple also made a significant move, acquiring Hidden Road for $1.25 billion to deploy its stablecoin RLUSD across a global institutional network.
Crypto IPOs Capture Wall Street Attention
The year also marked a historic rush of crypto IPOs. Circle Internet Group (CRCL) debuted with explosive demand, raising $1.05 billion and closing at a valuation above $18 billion. Bullish, backed by Peter Thiel, raised $1.1 billion, marketing itself as a Wall Street-focused venue.
Figure Technologies (FIGR) raised $693 million, showcasing blockchain’s efficiency in automating traditional financial processes. These listings indicate that institutional investors value compliance, deep liquidity, and operational transparency over speculative retail features.
