Bitwise CIO: Next Bull Market Driven by 9 Key Narratives Including AiFi, Revenue-Generating Products, and Vitalik's Return to Ethereum
Odaily News Bitwise Chief Investment Officer Matt Hougan posted on platform X, stating that cryptocurrency is driven by narratives, and there are currently nine major narratives poised to lead the next cycle.
First, revenue-generating products. Blockchain annual revenue is currently around $70 to $80 billion. As mainstream adoption accelerates and industry revenue scales to hundreds of billions of dollars, projects that generate revenue will be rewarded.
Second, AiFi. AI agents will use cryptocurrency, stablecoins, and DeFi instead of bank accounts, and their scale is difficult to estimate.
Third, the ebb of fiat currency. As fiat currencies depreciate, the world will turn to hard assets, including BTC.
Fourth, institutional adoption. Institutional adoption of cryptocurrency is a decade-long mega-trend, measured in trillions.
Fifth, regulatory progress. The benefits of positive regulation have not yet materialized. The Genius Act will take effect in January 2027. Once regulatory clarity is achieved, investment and mainstream adoption will experience hockey-stick growth.
Sixth, the stablecoin supercycle. Although the assets under management for stablecoins have temporarily stalled at $300 billion, they will grow to trillions in the future, becoming the backbone of the 21st-century global payment rail.
Seventh, tokenization. Currently, only $20 billion in assets have been tokenized, while the global stock, bond, and real estate markets total hundreds of trillions, representing a market penetration of less than 0.1%.
Eighth, the DeFi renaissance. With the tokenization of RWA assets and improvements in protocol tokenomics post-regulatory clarity, the DeFi scale will expand 100-fold.
Ninth, Ethereum's "Jobs return moment." Vitalik Buterin's return to the Ethereum ecosystem, analogous to Steve Jobs' return to Apple in 1996, will usher in an explosive period of development for Ethereum.
