As digital assets move into a deeper phase of integration with the global financial system, 2025 marked a clear turning point defined by regulatory clarity, renewed institutional participation, and a thawing of capital markets activity. Entering the new year, crypto is increasingly embedded across payments, market infrastructure, and global commerce. Institutional adoption continues to accelerate, with stablecoins gaining traction for payments, treasury operations, and cross-border transactions. At the same time, capital interest is shifting toward late-stage and institutional-grade crypto companies as demand grows for more mature, sophisticated products and services.
To unpack the themes shaping crypto in the year ahead, FintechTV anchor Remy Blaire was joined live at the New York Stock Exchange by Anthony Vassallo, Senior VP of Crypto at Silicon Valley Bank.
Vassallo pointed to a notable evolution in venture capital’s role within the crypto ecosystem, explaining that 2025 marked the year crypto firmly returned to the mainstream. Looking ahead, he emphasized that 2026 will be defined by infrastructure development, noting a persistent valuation overhang across both VC and crypto markets dating back to 2022. As a result, capital is increasingly concentrated, with larger investments flowing to fewer winners, totaling just shy of $8 billion. Unlike prior speculative cycles, today’s focus is on established platforms capable of meaningfully reshaping financial systems.
Corporate venture capital activity has also intensified, driving a sharp rise in mergers and acquisitions. Vassallo summed up the trend succinctly, stating, “Why build when you can buy?” As demand accelerates, partnerships between traditional financial institutions and crypto-native firms are reaching historic levels. He cited Coinbase’s acquisition of derivative exchange Daabit for $2.9 billion and Kraken’s purchase of Ninja Trader for $1.5 billion as examples of the scale and momentum behind this consolidation. With deal activity expected to increase further, the crypto landscape is poised for continued transformation.
Looking ahead, Vassallo outlined five major themes expected to shape the year:
- Institutional capital is set to continue rising, alongside increased M&A activity across the sector.
- Stablecoins are becoming increasingly functional and may trend toward becoming the “Internet’s dollar”. Their advantages include tokenized fiat, programmable compliance, and near-instant settlement compared with traditional T+2 timelines.
- There is growing recognition of Real World Assets (RWAs), highlighting blockchain’s ability to track ownership and movement of digital representations of physical assets.
- Prediction markets are emerging as a meaningful segment of crypto, offering insights into sentiment and capital allocation.
- The role of artificial intelligence in crypto is evolving, with Vassallo posing a central question: “Does crypto need AI more than AI needs crypto?”
As regulatory frameworks continue to take shape, Vassallo noted that innovation could accelerate in areas such as betting mechanisms, with prediction markets serving as powerful tools for forecasting and risk assessment.
He also addressed how institutional attitudes toward crypto have shifted over the past year and a half. Where financial institutions once hesitated to engage, the focus has now moved toward integration and improving user experience, particularly in payments, treasury management, and operational efficiency.
Overall, the discussion reflected an optimistic outlook for digital assets, underscoring the importance of robust infrastructure, sustained institutional involvement, and emerging technologies like AI. With regulatory clarity improving and capital markets reopening, the foundations appear to be forming for the next phase of innovation in digital finance.