Thoughts on Crypto years 2025 and 2026
Bitcoin League, Ethereum Vs. Solana, Chain-Agnostic Strategy, and Road to 2026
The Bitcoin League
Bitcoin remains the leading digital store of value, with growing adoption from institutional investors and increasing interest from nation-state treasuries. Bitcoin is on a path to become the world reserve asset, and only a few black swan events could disrupt its trajectory: breakthroughs in quantum computing, nuclear conflict, major financial fraud, or catastrophic technical failure.
Bitcoin sits in a league of its own, with no serious competition in sight. That said, there will always be speculation in potential candidates should Bitcoin fails. From a store-of-value perspective, Ethereum is the clear runner-up.
As Bitcoin’s price moves past $1 million, we may see greater adoption of Satoshis (the smallest unit of Bitcoin). Discussions around this transition will likely intensify starting in 2028. Meanwhile, “Stay Humble and Stack Sats”.
Ethereum Vs. Solana
The competition between Ethereum and Solana will not only continue but will likely become more productive and symbiotic. With Solana increasingly recognized as the second most valuable smart contract platform after Ethereum, the focus is shifting toward highlighting their respective strengths rather than engaging in the zero-sum competition of past years. Healthy rivalry breeds better outcomes - a win for the broader ecosystem.
Ethereum’s strategy is to scale through Layer 2 networks, preserving Layer 1 as the most secure and decentralized (but expensive) base layer. While this approach reduces Layer 1’s vulnerability, it introduces fragmentation risks across the ecosystem. For now, Ethereum remains the dominant DeFi leader based on Total Value Locked (TVL) and other metrics.
Solana, by contrast, aims to keep everything on Layer 1 - fast, cheap, and scalable, but at the cost of some decentralization. Despite early challenges, Solana proved resilient during the wave of new users and transactions in 2024. Whether it can sustain this scalability under continued growth remains to be seen. Solana also leads in DePIN (Decentralized Physical Infrastructure) use cases and memecoin markets, both of which benefit from its low-cost, high-frequency transactions.
In summary, Solana’s innovations pushed Ethereum to become faster and more affordable. If Ethereum addresses its Layer 2 fragmentation issues, Solana may need to find new inspiration to maintain its edge. Alternatively, Ethereum may solve its last technical challenges but fail to further capture economic value for ETH - a scenario resembling Cosmos, where the hub (ATOM) is less valuable than some of its connected chains (e.g CRO). Either way, this ongoing competition will likely result in better outcomes for the ecosystem.
Another ecosystem joining the elites
Expect another emerging blockchain ecosystem to rise and establish itself among the leading platforms. The next two years will likely solidify this new player’s position.
Our platform highlights several promising ecosystems, including Sui, Injective, Celestia, Sei, TON, Qubic, and others. However, it's equally possible that a lesser-known technology or stealth project could suddenly capture the spotlight and transform the industry overnight.
This is what makes crypto exploration exciting - with dedication and curiosity, anyone can uncover the next breakthrough before even the most established research or investment institutions.
Our goal is to provide insights and guidance to help you along this journey. We strive to facilitate the creation of a lasting digital legacy for everyone. But in the end, the final discovery is yours to make - and that moment of realization should belong to you alone.
The strategy of chain-agnostic tokens
As blockchains become more interoperable and user experience continues to improve, investment strategies may evolve accordingly. Beyond holding store-of-value assets like Bitcoin, it may be wise to hedge by investing in popular chain-agnostic tokens - applications or protocols that can operate seamlessly across multiple blockchains. This approach helps mitigate ecosystem-specific risks, offering broader exposure to the growing crypto landscape.
Infrastructure protocols are particularly well-positioned in this regard. For instance, The Graph (GRT), a decentralized indexing protocol, is primarily based on Ethereum and Arbitrum but also supports various other blockchains, including Arweave, NEAR, Solana, and most Layer 2 networks. Similarly, Chainlink, with its Cross-Chain Interoperability Protocol, has become essential for connecting data across ecosystems. Other examples include ENS, Uniswap, SAFE, and many more, which could gain increasing relevance as Layer 2 solutions mature and app-specific chains proliferate.
Beware of 2026
Crypto markets tend to follow four-year cycles: one okay year, one great year, another okay year, and then a bad year.
While many expect 2025 to be the best year of the current cycle, I argue that 2024 was already an excellent year. 2025 will likely be another positive year, but at some point, the music will stop. This cooldown period could begin as early as Q2 or stretch to year-end. Either way, 2026 will likely be a challenging year for prices.
This is not a cause for concern. Rather, it’s an opportunity to prepare for the long term. Understanding the cycles and acting accordingly is key to sustainability in this space.
Opportunities in 2026
While 2026 may not be a strong year for prices, it could present significant opportunities. Historically, the best investments are made during downturns, when attention is low. These quieter periods are also when groundbreaking technologies tend to emerge.
Looking ahead, here are some angles to consider:
As a builder: Bitcoin-based platforms and protocols will continue to attract a risk-averse yet high-potential user base. (Stay tuned for the upcoming Bitcoin-focused post around block 900k.)
As an explorer: Crypto-AI intersections will likely leave a long tail of rewards and incentives. Exploring new technologies can be rewarding both intellectually and financially.
As an investor: beyond chain-agnostic tokens, look for strong technology projects with sustainable, long-term development. Zcash, for instance, remains underappreciated but could see a resurgence. Many other overlooked coins could also gain attention in the next cycle.
AI Agents and Crypto
AI agents are a hot topic in the crypto space, and for good reason. These autonomous entities could in time fundamentally reshape financial markets as AI-driven transactions gain traction.
It’s important to note that, at present, many AI agent-related tokens behave similarly to memecoins: highly volatile, driven by hype cycles, and prone to rapid turnover. New tokens emerge daily, often replacing those that are quickly forgotten. While the long-term potential of AI agents is real, it’s crucial to avoid getting caught in short-term speculative schemes. These tokens thrive on attention - and just as they rise with it, they can fade without it.
Unlike traditional stock market bots, AI agents operate at a more sophisticated, second-order level:
They execute transactions autonomously based on learned behavior, rather than relying on direct human input.
They manage their own wallets and holdings, using native tokens as a starting point and leveraging crypto's inherent digital infrastructure, rather than trading on behalf of a human account.
While initially programmed by humans, AI agents continuously evolve their strategies in response to real-time market feedback.
Over time, these agents could develop entire financial ecosystems with their own markets, rules, and dynamics. They may even become activists within these ecosystems, influencing outcomes based on their internal logic and interests.
This leads to a fascinating question: are we witnessing the emergence of a new asset class, or perhaps even a new demographic class - one in which powerful AI agents advocate for their own existence?
There are many possible paths from here, but one thing is clear: what matters most is how we, as humans, choose to engage with this emerging reality. Will we seek collaboration, establish guardrails, or resist the rise of autonomous financial actors? The future of this relationship remains unwritten.
10102 Your Digital Legacy App | Wallet 101 | Insights
Disclaimers apply. Thank you for reading! Please share below.
10102’s X | M1K4’X