
Jakarta, Pintu News – The crypto market often exhibits seasonal patterns, and one of the most interesting is the rally ahead of Christmas. Based on performance from 2019 to 2024, a number of cryptocurrencies show a tendency to rally in December, although the pattern does not occur every year.
The biggest gains were concentrated in bull market phases or recovery periods, not in tight market conditions. The five assets analyzed were Bitcoin , Ethereum , Binance Coin , Litecoin , and Monero (XMR), with the results confirming that the Christmas rally depended heavily on macro conditions and market sentiment.
Bitcoin (BTC) recorded its biggest December surge in 2020, when the price increased by about 48 percent from $19,700 (IDR 327,349,000) to $29,000 (IDR 483,430,000). Another strong rise occurred in December 2023 with growth of about 12 percent due to optimism regarding spot ETFs. However, in 2019 Bitcoin actually fell by about 5 percent, followed by a decline of almost 19 percent in 2021 when market pressure increased.
In 2022, Bitcoin weakens again by around 4 percent and records a decline of more than 3 percent in 2024, signaling its sensitive nature to tight macro conditions. The movement pattern shows that the December rally did not appear consistently, but only in a favorable market environment.
Interestingly, Bitcoin’s biggest moves tend to occur after Christmas Day, not before. In 2020 and 2023, the week after Christmas produced stronger performance than the week leading up to the holiday.
Ethereum (ETH) showed a similar pattern to Bitcoin, with prominent December rallies in 2020 and 2023. In December 2020, Ethereum rose about 21 percent from $615 (IDR10,255,000) to $750 (IDR12,502,000). Strong momentum was again seen in 2023 when the price rose by about 11 percent amid the crypto market recovery. The rally was driven by improved macro sentiment and increased network activity.
Also read: Kevin O’Leary: “December Rate Cut Won’t Move Bitcoin!” What’s the Reason?
However, in 2019 Ethereum actually fell by about 15 percent, followed by a 20 percent decline in 2021 when the market entered a pressure phase. The year 2022 was no better as Ethereum fell by around 8 percent, followed by another decline of around 8 percent in 2024. Overall, Ethereum’s December performance depends heavily on liquidity conditions and risk appetite. When the market tightens, it tends to decline faster than Bitcoin.
Binance Coin (BNB) saw the most explosive December rally during the research period. In 2020, BNB rose by around 19 percent as trading volume on the Binance exchange surged. The biggest increase was recorded in 2023 when BNB soared by around 37 percent from $228 (IDR 3,799,000) to $312 (IDR 5,200,000). The rally was driven by a recovery in sentiment after Binance’s legal uncertainty subsided.
However, negative performance was also striking in some years. In 2019, BNB fell by around 13 percent, then plummeted by 18 percent in 2021 as market pressure increased. The year 2022 saw a similar decline of 18 percent due to rampant exchange-related FUD. BNB’s December record shows its high beta character, where gains are much greater on positive sentiment, but declines are also deeper in periods of market stress.
Litecoin (LTC) often acts as a high-beta asset that reinforces the direction of the crypto market towards the end of the year. December 2020 was its best month with a surge of around 42 percent from $88 (Rp1,466,000) to $125 (Rp2,083,000). This rally was amplified by Bitcoin’s breakout and increased payment support, including PayPal integration that added legitimacy to Litecoin.
Also read: Wall Street overtakes Bitcoin (BTC) in nine days, how?
But after that, Litecoin’s December performance tended to weaken. In 2019, LTC fell by about 13 percent, followed by a decline of almost 30 percent in 2021 and about 12 percent in 2022. Nonetheless, the coin recorded a modest increase of around 5 percent in 2023 and around 7 percent in 2024. This suggests that Litecoin still benefited from the year-end risk-on phase, especially when the halving narrative resurfaced.
Monero (XMR) has emerged as one of the most consistent December performers. In 2020, XMR rose about 15 percent, and interestingly, in 2022 when the majority of coins weakened, Monero actually rose about 9 percent.
The year 2023 also showed an increase of around 10 percent from around $160 (IDR 2,667,000) to $180 (IDR 3,001,000). The increase reflects stable transaction demand as well as Monero’s function as a defensive asset.
Monero’s decline in other years has been relatively small compared to other major altcoins. Its reliability is especially noticeable when the market faces regulatory pressure or exchange-related concerns. Throughout 2019-2024, XMR managed to avoid extreme declines in December and often ended with a positive performance. This positions it as one of the most stable mid-caps heading into the year-end holidays.
Six years of data shows that the five cryptocurrencies did experience December rallies, but only under favorable market conditions. The biggest rallies generally occur during bull market or recovery phases, while bearish periods see negative performance in almost all assets except Monero. This pattern confirms that Christmas rallies are not a guarantee, but rather a phenomenon that is heavily influenced by macro conditions each year.
Santa rally refers to the tendency of crypto markets to record gains in late December, especially near or after Christmas Day.
The biggest rallies for most assets occurred in 2020 and 2023 when the market was in a bull or recovery phase.
Monero shows stability due to consistent transactional demand and its nature as a defensive asset when regulatory uncertainty increases.
No, all of the assets studied experienced declines in certain years, especially during bearish phases or macro stress.
Loose liquidity and high risk appetite tend to drive rallies, while macro tightening triggers faster declines.
That’s the latest information about crypto. Follow us on Google News to get the latest crypto news about crypto projects and blockchain technology. Also, learn crypto from scratch with complete discussion through Pintu Academy and stay up-to-date with the latest crypto market such as bitcoin price today, xrp coin price today, dogecoin and other crypto asset prices through Pintu Market.
Enjoy an easy and secure crypto trading experience by downloading Pintu crypto app via Google Play Store or App Store now. Also, get a web trading experience with various advanced trading tools such as pro charting, various types of order types, and portfolio tracker only at Pintu Pro.
*Disclaimer
This content aims to enrich readers’ information. Pintu collects this information from various relevant sources and is not influenced by outside parties. Note that an asset’s past performance does not determine its projected future performance. Trading crypto carries high risk and volatility, always do your own research and use cold hard cash before investing. All activities of buying and selling bitcoin and other crypto asset investments are the responsibility of the reader.
Reference: