The month of May 2025 proved to be a period of significant growth for leading cryptocurrencies, with both Bitcoin and Ethereum concluding the month with strong positive returns. According to data from CoinGlass, Bitcoin recorded a 10.99% increase, while Ethereum experienced an even more substantial 40.84% surge. Historically, both assets have now closed May positively seven times, with Bitcoin also registering an 11.07% gain in May 2024.
Bitcoin’s Volatile Ascent
Throughout May 2025, Bitcoin demonstrated notable price movements. The asset twice updated its all-time high between May 21st and 22nd, briefly reaching $111,800. However, its trajectory faced interruptions. A temporary dip below $108,000 occurred following remarks by U.S. President Donald Trump regarding new tariffs on imported goods from the EU. Bitcoin quickly recovered after the President postponed the decision. Further price volatility was observed when a U.S. federal court initially revoked these tariffs, only for an appeals court to temporarily reinstate them during ongoing legal review. At the time of this report, Bitcoin was trading at approximately $104,259.
Ethereum’s Post-Update Performance
Ethereum also delivered robust performance in May. Its remarkable 40.84% gain for May 2025 follows its historic peak monthly increase of 161.43% back in May 2017. A primary driver for Ethereum’s recent surge was the significant Pectra update. Following this upgrade on May 8th and 9th, the asset’s value successfully broke past $2,200, eventually climbing beyond $2,700. Ethereum was trading around $2,510 at the time of writing.
Looking Back at April
In the preceding month, April 2025, Bitcoin had registered a 14% increase, whereas Ethereum experienced a slight decline.
Kate specializes in clear, engaging coverage of business developments and financial markets. With a knack for breaking down economic data, she makes complex topics easy to understand.