Memecoins are crushing it in 2024. Binance Research says they're the hottest thing in crypto right now.

The research arm of the top crypto exchange dropped a bombshell. Memecoins are driving crypto awareness this year. They've outperformed all other sectors.

"Memecoins have driven a significant amount of activity among traders and captured a notable amount of attention within the crypto community," Binance Research stated. "Considering that memecoins have been the top performing sector year-to-date and have returned a staggering 279%, it is hardly surprising that it has been a sector that has garnered much interest."

Two blockchains are spearheading the memecoin surge. They are Coinbase's Ethereum layer-2 chain Base and Ethereum rival Solana.

AI-related crypto projects are also turning heads. They've sparked considerable consumer interest.

DeFi is making a comeback in 2024. It's not messing around.

Binance Research noted, "2024 has seen a substantial influx of capital into Decentralized Finance ('DeFi'), driving the TVL (total value locked) up 72.8% year-to-date ('YTD') to US$94.1B, from US$54.4B at the year's start."

This surge has boosted nearly every DeFi sector. Major and niche markets alike are reaping the benefits.

New protocols are emerging. They're bringing previously inaccessible financial primitives on-chain.

Looking ahead, Binance highlights two more crypto sectors to watch. These are real-world asset tokenization and the growing Bitcoin ecosystem.