Watch THESE CRYPTOS In 2026!!

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2025 was a rollercoaster of a year for crypto.

And this has everyone wondering,

what could happen?

In 2026.

Luckily, a recent institutional report outlines

what key trends could dominate the crypto market

in the coming year, and it's eye-opening.

In this video, we are going to break down

the most important trends from this report

that you should be focused on in 2026.

Trends that could make or break your portfolio.

By the end of this, you will know exactly where

to look for value over the coming months.

So be sure to watch the whole way through.

Before we begin, you need to know that I'm not a financial advisor

and nothing in this video should be considered financial

or investment advice.

It's for educational purposes only.

And if you enjoy content like this, prove it by punching that like button.

Now, the report will be summarizing for you today

comes from Coinbase Institutional, and it's titled, quote,

2026 Crypto Market Outlook.

It's pretty lengthy, so we'll just be giving you

the key points in today's video,

but we'll leave a link to the full report for you

down in the description if you want more information

about the key points that we cover.

With that in mind, the report's authors start

with something we're all wondering.

And that's the key themes to watch in 2026,

not just in crypto, but more broadly as well.

And one theme is AI's economic impact,

especially on productivity, because its integration is new

and not yet reflected in official data.

They even compare the current AI boom

to the tech euphoria of the late 1990s.

Now, for context, Coinbase has been getting into AI

over the last couple of years, which is presumably

why it's the first thing that they mention.

Anyways, another theme is crypto regulation.

In the US, the Genius Act set clear rules

for stable coin issuers in 2025,

while the Clarity Act aims to clarify

market structure rules in 2026.

Meanwhile, the EU's micable is in full swing

and regions like the Middle East, North Africa, Asia,

and Latin America are developing regulatory frameworks

of their own.

The report argues that clearer rules will allow projects

to innovate and explore new possibilities,

including more advanced crypto derivatives,

why the use of crypto in payments and transactions,

and new ways to deliver value to token holders,

such as enhanced staking and fee distributions.

Now, another theme is also a no-brainer,

and that's spot crypto ETFs and digital asset treasury

companies or debts, both of which swung open the door

to institutional adoption.

The good news is that the report expects spot ETFs

to gain momentum in 2026, mainly due to new SEC guidelines

that shorten the approval process from 270 days to 75 days.

However, the authors warn that debts may need

to adopt a new business model to stay competitive

and relevant in 2026.

This debt 2.0 approach would go beyond

simply accumulating coins and tokens,

doing things like staking and participating in defy.

And this ties into another theme

that the authors call, quote, tokenomics 2.0.

With clearer, more supportive regulation,

they expect projects to offer new ways

to deliver value to token holders,

such as revenue distributions and token buybacks.

And they see regulation as the primary catalyst

for the next phase in crypto's economic evolution.

And this relates to another theme that's

been hot lately, and that's privacy.

The authors note a surge in privacy-focused transactions

and expect the sector to grow as both institutions

and individual investors look to shield their activity

from the prime eyes.

Institutions want privacy to prevent competitors

from copying their work, while individuals

are increasingly wary of surveillance technologies

that threaten their freedoms.

And of course, the authors also highlight

the intersection between crypto and AI,

which they think will be front and center in 2026.

And new developments like Coinbase's X402 Protocol

could allow AI agents to handle microtransactions,

creating new forms of commerce.

And obviously, this will all be done

on application-specific blockchains

with institutional grade infrastructure,

including payment rails and private permission

to chains for asset tokenization and security trading.

However, this growth also has made the landscape

quite fragmented.

And that's why the authors believe

the future lies in an interoperable network of network's model.

Noting that winners will be those that work with others

to enable atomic multi-chain settlement,

unified liquidity pools, and synchronized real world assets,

another key theme for 2026.

Now the authors expect tokenized equities, aka stocks,

to grow the fastest.

And these assets can trade on chain 24-7,

settle almost instantly, and integrate directly with DeFi,

given them an edge over traditional stocks

where capital can sit idle outside market hours

and settlement can take days.

Production markets are also predicted

to be a key sector to watch.

And interestingly, the authors say this is because of a provision

in July's one big beautiful bull act

that limits tax deductions for gambling losses to 90%

instead of 100%.

Others may seem minor,

but it could create phantom income

where people owe taxes on small wins or even losses.

And production markets could offer a more tax-efficient alternative.

Production markets are also likely to grow

as tools for forecasting future events

as spurring the launch of more platforms.

However, this could fragment the market

creating an opportunity for prediction market aggregators

to become the dominant interface for the sector.

So, take note.

And the final theme the authors say to watch in 2026

is of course, stablecoins.

They call them crypto's top use case

and the quote killer app for mainstream blockchain adoption.

With clearer regulation,

more tradfire players are recognizing their benefits

and the sector is expected to just keep on growing,

potentially reaching $1.2 trillion by 2028.

Now, the next part of the report looks at specific cryptos

like Bitcoin Ethereum and Solana, which reminds me.

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Anyhow, this part of the report starts by examining

Bitcoin's performance in 2025.

While Bitcoin's lower volatility

puts it on par with major high-growth tech stocks,

the author's note that its 2025 price action

has been awkward as tech stocks

and gold have outperformed it on a risk-adjusted basis.

Next, the author's question,

the relevance of Bitcoin's four-year cycle,

while most track it based on the harving,

they are more skeptical,

given that there have been only four harvings.

They argue that it's hard to judge their significance

when other factors like global liquidity

interest rates and broader monetary or fiscal developments

are usually at play.

Moreover, a mix of new factors

arguably make the harving even less relevant

as Bitcoin's demand and market dynamics

have changed completely.

Miners no longer exert major selling pressure

and their influence has faded.

But the biggest shift is Bitcoin's adoption

by institutions, asset managers, hedge funds,

and even some banks.

Some publicly traded companies have started buying Bitcoin

to become debts, and these new players

now have a far greater impact on market sentiment

and price action than the miners.

Moreover, their focus on large long-term investments

rather than short-term trades

has made Bitcoin more consistent and less volatile.

In any case, the author's then address

Bitcoin's biggest security threat, quantum computing.

While not an immediate danger,

it may be approaching faster than many expect.

It's a men's power could someday break

Bitcoin's encryption,

putting private keys, accounts, and fans at risk,

a scenario dubbed Q-Day.

Quantum computers could also mind blocks

far more efficiently than current Bitcoin miners,

potentially disrupting its economic model.

Despite this, though, the authors call quantum computing

a lower priority concern due to its current limits,

but they do stress that migrating to quantum

resistant signatures is urgently needed.

Luckily, plans to address these risks are in development,

which is, frankly, beyond the scope of this video.

Next, the reports examine Ethereum's eth,

which had a wild 2025.

ETH dropped 60% from January to April,

but reached new all-time highs by late summer.

And this was driven by two main factors.

Institutional demand via spot ETFs

and digital asset treasury companies,

as well as the Pectra upgrade,

which improved Ethereum's UX and scalability.

In 2026, the authors say a renewed ETH

uptrend will rely on macro tailwinds

like lower interest rates, higher risk appetite,

and ease in monetary conditions.

RWA's and stablecoins could be key drivers as well,

as since Ethereum holds a large share of both,

especially stablecoins,

with about 53% residing on Ethereum.

Ethereum focused DATs drove much of ETH demand in 2025,

but as bullish momentum faded,

their M-N-A-V, or multiple to net asset value, dropped sharply.

And this made them less attractive to investors,

which could result in forced liquidations to stay afloat.

Still, the authors expect DATs to provide a tailwind in 2026,

though likely smaller than in 2025.

The authors also touch on Ethereum's latest upgrade,

Fusaka, which happened on December 3rd.

Now, Fusaka implemented 12 Ethereum improvement proposals

or EIPs to enhance scalability and efficiency.

Ethereum's next upgrade, Glamster Dam,

is scheduled for 2026,

and it will further enhance scalability and efficiency

while reducing centralization risks,

definitely one to watch closely.

Now, the next part of the report focuses on Solana,

which started strong in 2025.

By January, Sol hit an all-time high of $295,

but momentum faded fast.

Over the next few months,

it's dropped more than 60% to around $100.

Still, several bullish events helped support its price

throughout the year, especially relative to Bitcoin.

And these include the first sole-staking ETF,

the debut of tokenized equities called X-Docs,

the Seeker mobile phone launch,

approval of the Alpine Glow upgrade,

and the growing number of Solana-focused DATs.

However, by Q4, macro pressures outweighed all of these,

concerns over tariffs, dollar liquidity,

and inflation pushed Bitcoin lower,

pulling the broader market down with it.

Naturally, the authors expect altcoins

to keep following Bitcoin in 2026, including Solana.

Now, Sol's all-time high was driven by meancoins,

which dominated most of 2024.

But by 2025, traders were feeling the strain

of the unforgiving PVP nature of meancoins.

Sol's demand drivers then shifted from speculative retail

to DATs, ETFs, and on-chain funds,

all of which have longer-term time horizons.

However, the authors did caution

that if DATs continue to trade below their NAV,

they won't be able to sell equity

at a premium to buy more Sol,

and may even be forced to de-risk

by dumping some of their holdings.

Regardless, a wave of fresh spot Solana ETFs

opened fresh avenues for capital in the second half of 2025.

And the authors expect more Solana ETFs in 2026,

as regulatory roadblocks have been removed.

And because many of these ETFs offer staking yields,

these are expected to further boost demand in 2026.

The authors also examined Solana's long-awaited

fire dancer upgrade,

where it recently launched in a limited capacity on mainnet,

and is intended to boost Solana's performance,

resilience, and client diversity,

enabling up to one million transactions per second

while keeping fees low during congestion.

And this also supports complex use cases

like advanced DeFi and gaming.

The next upgrade, Alpen Glow,

was approved by validators in September,

and is set to launch on mainnet in early 2026.

Alpen Glow will enhance network latency, efficiency,

and robustness, positioning Solana

as a more mature institution-ready blockchain,

and enabling use cases like payments,

RWA's, and other high throughput applications.

Obviously, another crypto niche where Solana is dominant

is stablecoins,

which the authors examine in the next part of the report.

Now, stablecoins have seen a compound annual growth rate

of about 63% since January 2021.

Transaction volumes soared from $22.8 trillion in 2024

to $47.6 trillion in 2025.

The authors do note that future growth will depend

on efficient ramps, broad distribution networks,

and the evolving roles of market participants.

They also note that over the past two years,

stablecoins have grown from a mere convenience

to a core part of digital settlements,

vital to the global financial system.

Their role in cross-border remittances and far settlements

makes them ideal for high-frequency time-sensitive transactions,

as well as collateral in DeFi and tokenized economies.

And then, the report looks at the interplay

between the rise of stablecoins

and the ongoing trend of de-dollarization.

In short, the proliferation of dollar-backed stablecoins

is supporting the dollar's dominance,

which could paradoxically slow the de-dollarization trend

and hinder crypto's adoption,

at least in the context of replacing fiat currencies.

The authors note that stablecoins have moved

beyond their USD-centric roots

and a new wave picked to other assets is emerging.

This diversification indicates demand

for non-USD-backed currencies

and also tokenized precious metals,

which have grown a lot recently,

mostly due to the hype around gold and silver.

And that's a perfect segue into the next part of the report

which focuses on tokenized RWA's.

Extreme stablecoins are distributed RWA's,

that is, those withdrawable to self-custodial wallets,

now total about $18 billion in value,

which is roughly 18 times higher than in 2022,

with most being hulled in tokenized US treasuries.

And as I noted earlier, regulatory developments

both in the US and globally have been

and will be the key driver of tokenized RWA adoption.

And this legal clarity has enabled institutions

to confidently launch major tokenized RWA products,

each managing billions of dollars in assets.

Now, while Ethereum currently dominates the RWA market,

late 2025 saw a shift toward other chains,

like Solana, Avalanche, and BNB.

The authors expect RWA's to become a core pillar

of crypto alongside stablecoins,

but coin Ethereum and major DeFi protocols.

Not surprisingly, the authors take a closer look

at tokenized equities, which you'll recall

is code for tokenized stocks.

They note that retail investors quickly adopt

a tokenized stocks in 2025.

And that's mostly because exchanges listed blutes of equities,

institutions built on chain settlement infrastructure

and major players, including Coinbase,

got clearer SEC guidance.

Despite all this, though, tokenized equities

are still minuscule compared to other RWA categories.

Naturally, this leaves significant upside potential,

but it's not without risk.

Liquidity is still extremely low,

making tokenized stocks prone to slippage and volatility.

And these assets also rely on oracles

for accurate off-chain price data

and ownership rules can vary by jurisdiction.

That's it.

The authors expect tokenized equities

to grow rapidly in 2026.

The report then examines tokenized US Treasuries,

which more than doubled in market cap in 2025.

And this growth was driven by just a few institutions,

namely BlackRock and Undo Finance.

The authors speculate that tokenized treasuries

have become dominant for two reasons.

First, they're quickly becoming the standard

for on-chain collateral.

And second, their liquidity and access

are superior to their traditional counterparts,

which is presumably why they're becoming the standard

for on-chain collateral.

And as a fun fact, treasuries are also used

in trad-fire as collateral.

Whatever the case, another RWA sector

that grew exponentially in 2025

is tokenized commodities,

which tripled in value over the year.

And these tokenized versions of physical products

like precious metals and agricultural goods

are often fully backed and redeemable

for their underlying assets.

Tokenized gold was the clear outlier in 2025,

though largely due to the parabolic price action

of gold itself.

Meanwhile, tokenized versions of industrial

and agricultural commodities are a newer development,

but have clearly shown signs of growth potential.

Thanks to the advantages tokenized commodities

have over their real-world counterparts,

their convenience, programmability,

and real-world asset exposure,

the authors expect the sector to expand further in 2026.

The final RWA sector to watch in 2026

is also the largest private credit.

And tokenization is gaining traction here

because it addresses many of the traditional markets'

pain points, namely transparency and liquidity.

And this brings us to the final part of the report,

regulation which saw major developments in 2025.

Alongside the Genius and Clarity Acts mentioned earlier,

both the SEC and CFTC made strides over their own.

The SEC launched Project Crypto,

directing staff to define which digital assets

qualify as securities, modernized custody requirements,

introduce innovation exemptions,

and set generic listing standards

for exchange traded products like Spot Crypto ETFs.

Meanwhile, the CFTC rolled out

its listed Spot Crypto Trading Initiative,

enabling exchanges to list certain types of crypto products,

including leveraged or margined spot trades,

which was previously a gray area.

The CFT also sought public input on using tokenized assets

as collateral in derivatives markets.

Taken together, these moves set the stage

for the most transformative regulatory era

the crypto market has ever seen.

And as we mentioned earlier,

regulatory progress has accelerated outside of the US too.

And this global push for keyer rules

will give crypto a more consistent regulatory environment,

open in the door to global innovation.

Okay, this brings us to the end of the report.

Well, I mean sort of, there is another section

where Coinbase basically brags

about its own developments in 2025

and what it's planning for 2026.

You're more than welcome to check those details out

in the full report if you're curious.

For now though, you may be wondering

what all of this means for crypto in 2026.

While market conditions may be moving towards

bare market territory,

this also gives the crypto sector plenty of time

to build robust frameworks that preserve its longevity

and pave the way for some of the most exciting developments yet.

Clear regulation will define how far developers

can push boundaries,

enabling solutions we can only imagine today.

And this will spark not only new technologies,

but also solutions to safeguard the crypto market itself.

Without the pressures of delivering flashy tech

that benefits retail investors,

crypto projects can focus on the stuff that really matters.

In fact, we reckon that this will be the time

where we see huge steps towards important issues

like quantum resistance.

However, there are a few things in 2026

that will be interesting to watch.

For instance, well, that's continue issue inequity

and debt to accumulate as much crypto as they possibly can.

Or are they about to join the fight for untrained sovereignty

by competing for block space?

Only time will tell.

There's also growing talk about the legitimacy

of crypto's four year cycle,

something that was also mentioned in today's report.

Quite frankly, the sheer fact that so many experts

have cast out on the four year cycle of late

isn't something that should be ignored.

With all that said, though, 2025 was a wild ride.

And if you're still here watching this video,

it's probably because you know

just how important blockchain technology really is.

Yes, we may be in for some pain,

but this also presents an opportunity to DIYOR

and accumulate cryptos that have serious upside potential

when the bear market inevitably ends.

Not financial advice, of course.

All right, if you want to learn more

about the quantum computing threat,

check out our video right over here on that.

And if you're wondering what challenges

but coin will face in 2026,

check out that video right over here.

Thank you all so much for watching

and I'll see you again soon.

This is Nick, signing off.

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