According to VanEck’s latest report, September 2025 witnessed familiar challenges in the crypto market, characterized by token declines and decreased blockchain revenues. The month ended with a significant focus on Solana’s Alpenglow upgrade and Ethereum’s Fusaka milestone, alongside a resurgence in enterprise blockchain initiatives.
The crypto market experienced a downturn with 23 out of 35 major tokens declining. Bitcoin (BTC) managed a 5% increase, while Ethereum (ETH) fell by 5%. The MarketVector Smart Contract Leaders Index remained flat, reflecting a mixed performance across altcoins. Stablecoins, however, captured attention with Plasma’s $10 billion chain launch, complemented by a substantial airdrop to Binance BNB stakers, contributing to BNB’s 16% rise.
Blockchain revenues declined by 16% month-over-month, driven by reduced market volatility. Ethereum’s revenue fell by 6%, Solana’s by 11%, and Tron’s by a notable 37%. Decreased volatility was evident as SOL, ETH, and BTC saw drops of 16%, 40%, and 26% respectively. Tron’s revenue drop was primarily due to an onchain governance proposal that significantly reduced transaction fees.
The top performers for September included Mantel (MNT) with a 53% increase, Avalanche (AVAX) at 24%, and Binance (BNB) at 16%. In contrast, Polygon (POL), Arbitrum (ARB), and Toncoin (TON) were among the laggards, experiencing declines of 19%, 17%, and 14% respectively.
Solana’s Alpenglow upgrade, passed with a 98% validator vote, promises significant improvements including faster finality times and enhanced network efficiency. The upgrade aims to boost transaction throughput by increasing block capacity. Meanwhile, Ethereum’s Fusaka upgrade, scheduled for December, is set to improve scalability by introducing Peer Data Availability Sampling, addressing data availability bottlenecks for Layer-2 solutions.
Perpetual decentralized exchanges (DEXs) like Hyperliquid and Aster are gaining traction, capturing nearly one-third of blockchain fee revenues. Hyperliquid’s on-chain order book model has attracted significant trading volumes, while Aster’s token launch on Binance’s BNB Chain has driven short-term interest. However, Aster’s sustainability in capturing market share remains uncertain, with much of its activity attributed to incentive-driven trading.
