Forget Bitcoin And Ethereum: These Cryptocurrencies Actually Made Gains In Q4 2025

Move over, blue chips. While Bitcoin and Ethereum spent Q4 2025 in a sideways grind, a handful of altcoins quietly printed green.

The Underdog Rally

Forget the market cap leaders. The real action happened further down the list. A select group of tokens—think BNB, Solana, and a few DeFi dark horses—defied the broader stagnation. They didn't just hold; they climbed. Some even notched double-digit gains while the majors slept.

Where the Smart Money Flowed

Capital didn't vanish; it rotated. It bypassed the crowded mega-cap trades and flowed into protocols with clear catalysts: major network upgrades, exploding DeFi TVL, or regulatory nods in key jurisdictions. It was a quarter for fundamentals, not just hype—though let's be honest, a little hype never hurts in this business.

The Takeaway for 2026

This isn't just a blip. It's a signal. The market is maturing, rewarding utility over pure speculation. The era of 'a rising tide lifts all boats' is giving way to a more discerning phase. As one cynical fund manager put it: 'The gains are always in the coins you don't own—until you FOMO in at the top.' Diversify your bets, do your own research, and maybe, just maybe, look beyond the two tokens your cousin won't stop talking about.

Privacy Tokens Overtake Bitcoin And Ethereum In Q4

Grayscale, the world’s largest digital asset manager, is ending the quarter with the release of a new report titled “Crypto Sectors Quarterly: A Preference for Privacy.” Published on December 29, the report highlighted investors shifting in Q4 2025, from risk-on assets like Bitcoin and Ethereum to cryptocurrencies with more specific use cases that could withstand market pressure. 

The asset management firm began by noting that Q4 2025 saw a slowdown in crypto momentum after a strong Q3. Overall market returns fell as investors reassessed expectations, but performance varied significantly across segments. While all six crypto sectors outperformed in Q3, they ultimately turned negative in Q4. 

Grayscale noted that only a small group of assets posted positive risk-adjusted returns during the quarter. This was a sharp contrast to the previous period, when large-cap cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin, Ethereum, Solana, Chainlink, BNB, and Avalanche led the market higher. 

In this challenging environment, the Currencies sector stood out, mainly driven by privacy-focused tokens that offered investors a defensive option. According to the report, privacy tokens were among the top performers and the dominant investment theme in Q4 2025. 

Assets like ZCash (ZEC), Monero (XMR), Decred (DCR), Dash (DASH), Beldex (BDX), and Basic Attention Token (BAT) frequently appeared in the top twenty rankings. Their strong performance reflected growing interest in privacy-focused blockchain solutions.

Notably, narrative momentum played a major role in these gains. Grayscale revealed that increased activity on privacy networks such as Zcash and Dash had supported stronger price action, as users and developers turned to tools that limit public exposure of financial activity. 

Overall, the trends observed in Q4 2025 suggest that privacy tokens were the most dominant performers and could continue to play a key role in shaping the crypto landscape. As volatility rises and market downturns occur, investors may increasingly diversify into other assets to protect their holdings from sharp price swings and uncertainty. 

Why And How Privacy Tokens Outperformed In Q4

In Grayscale’s report, ZCash was highlighted as the leading example of the crypto growth trend for Q4 2025. The network offers optional shielded transactions, and the rising share of balances this year pointed to growing demand for its privacy-focused features. 

Monero, which is the largest privacy crypto network, also outperformed during Q4 by relying on stealth addresses and confidential transaction data. Additionally, Decred drew attention by integrating governance with enhanced privacy via its Coinshuffle++ protocol. At the same time, Dash stood out with its digital payments platform, as daily transactions more than doubled, reflecting growing adoption and demand for private, fast payments. 

Notably, the BAT token benefited from the Brave Browser ecosystem, which surpassed 100 million monthly users in Q4. Meanwhile, Beldex made gains through privacy-focused services, including encrypted messaging, private browsing, and confidential payments.