Ethereum 2026: 5x Growth Window Opens, Institutions Snatch Up, ETH Revaluation

Original Author: Vivek Raman, Etherealize

Original Compilation: Saoirse, Foresight News

Editor’s Note: As 2026 begins, while global financial institutions are still searching for a definitive path toward digital transformation, Ethereum has quietly become the core battleground for institutions, backed by a decade of established security, scalable technology, and a clear regulatory environment. From JPMorgan deploying a money market fund on the public chain, Fidelity integrating asset management into Layer1 networks, to the passage of the U.S. “GENIUS Act” clearing regulatory obstacles for stablecoins, and platforms like Coinbase and Robinhood building their dedicated blockchains using Layer2 – a series of actions affirm Ethereum’s transformation from a “technology testing ground” to a “global financial infrastructure.” In this analysis, Etherealize’s Vivek Raman not only dissects the underlying logic behind Ethereum becoming the “best business platform,” but also forecasts a “triple track 5x growth” for tokenized assets, stablecoins, and ETH prices. His interpretation of institutional holding trends and the inflection point for the “blockchainization” of the financial system may provide crucial references for understanding the direction of the crypto market and financial reforms in the new year.

Over the past decade, Ethereum has established its position as the safest and most reliable blockchain platform for global institutional adoption.

Ethereum’s technology has achieved scalable applications, with institutional use cases already established. The global regulatory environment is welcoming of blockchain infrastructure, and the development of stablecoins and the process of asset tokenization are bringing fundamental changes.

Therefore, starting from 2026, Ethereum will become the best platform for conducting business.

After ten years of application promotion, stable operations, global adoption, and high availability assurance, Ethereum has become the preferred choice for institutions deploying blockchain. Next, let us review the key journey of how Ethereum gradually became the default platform for tokenized assets over the past two years.

Finally, we will provide predictions for Ethereum in 2026: the scale of tokenization, the scale of stablecoins, and the price of ETH are all expected to achieve 5x growth. The stage for Ethereum’s revival has been set, and the timing for various enterprises to adopt Ethereum’s infrastructure is ripe.

Ethereum: The Core Platform for Tokenized Assets

The transformation of the asset domain through blockchain is akin to the reshaping of the information domain by the internet — allowing assets to be digitized, programmable, and globally interoperable.

Asset tokenization digitizes assets, data, and payments by integrating them into a single infrastructure, thereby upgrading business processes comprehensively. Stocks, bonds, real estate, and other assets and funds will be able to circulate at internet speed. This is a significant upgrade that the financial system should have achieved long ago, and now, global public blockchains like Ethereum are finally making this vision a reality.

Asset tokenization is rapidly shifting from a popular concept to a fundamental upgrade of business models. Just as no company would abandon the internet to return to the era of fax machines, once financial institutions experience the efficiency, automation, and speed benefits brought by globally shared blockchain infrastructure, they will not revert to traditional models, and the tokenization process will be irreversible.

Currently, the vast majority of high-value asset tokenization is completed on the Ethereum platform — because Ethereum is the most neutral and secure global infrastructure, similarly to the internet, it is not controlled by any single entity and is open to all users.

By 2026, the “experimental phase” of asset tokenization will officially end, and the industry will enter the deployment phase. Major institutions are launching flagship products directly on the Ethereum platform to access global liquidity.

Here are some examples of institutions conducting asset tokenization on Ethereum:

• JPMorgan deployed a money market fund directly on Ethereum, becoming one of the first banks to adopt a public blockchain;
• Fidelity launched a money market fund on Ethereum Layer1 (the first layer network), integrating asset management and operational processes into the blockchain system;
• Apollo launched a private credit fund ACRED on the public blockchain, with the highest liquidity on Ethereum and its Layer2;
• BlackRock, as one of the most proactive advocates of the “everything tokenized” concept, led the wave of institutional asset tokenization by launching a tokenized money market fund BUIDL on Ethereum;
• Amundi (Europe’s largest asset management company) tokenized its Euro-denominated money market fund on the Ethereum platform;
• BNY Mellon (the oldest bank in America) tokenized a AAA-rated collateralized loan obligation (CLO) fund on the Ethereum platform;
• Baillie Gifford (one of the largest asset management companies in the UK) will launch its first tokenized bond fund on Ethereum and its Layer2 network.

Ethereum: The Core Blockchain for Stablecoins

Stablecoins are the first clear case of “product-market fit” in the asset tokenization field — by 2025, the transfer volume of stablecoins had exceeded $10 trillion. Stablecoins are essentially tokenized dollars, representing a “software upgrade of currency,” allowing dollars to circulate at internet speed and possess programmable features.

2025 is a key year for the development of stablecoins and public blockchains: the U.S. “GENIUS Act” (also known as the “Stablecoin Act”) was officially passed. This law established a regulatory framework for stablecoins and signaled a “green light” for the underlying public blockchain infrastructure of stablecoins.

Even before the passage of the “GENIUS Act,” Ethereum’s stablecoin adoption rate was already far ahead. Currently, 60% of stablecoins are deployed on Ethereum and its Layer2 networks (if we include Ethereum Virtual Machine-compatible chains that may become Ethereum Layer2 in the future, this ratio will reach 90%). The introduction of the “GENIUS Act” marks Ethereum’s formal “opening for business applications” — institutions are granted regulatory permission to deploy their own stablecoins on public blockchains.

The reason emails and websites achieved widespread adoption is that they connected to a unified global internet (rather than fragmented internal networks). Similarly, stablecoins and all tokenized assets can only fully realize their utility and network effects in a unified global public blockchain ecosystem.

Thus, the explosive growth of stablecoins is just beginning. A typical case is: SoFi became the first bank to issue a stablecoin (SoFiUSD) on a permissionless public blockchain, ultimately choosing the Ethereum platform.

This is just the “tip of the iceberg” for the development of stablecoins. Investment banks and new types of banks are exploring issuing their own stablecoins either independently or in alliance, while fintech companies are also advancing the deployment and integration of stablecoins. The digitization of the dollar on public blockchains has fully commenced, and Ethereum is the default platform for this process.

Ethereum: Building Dedicated Blockchains

Blockchain is not a “one-size-fits-all” tool. Global financial markets need to be customized to adapt to regional, regulatory, and customer group differences. For this reason, from its inception, Ethereum has been designed with a core focus on high security, and through the “Layer2 blockchains” that can be flexibly deployed on top of it, it has achieved a high degree of customization.

Just as every company has its own website, application, and customized environment on the internet, many enterprises will also have their own dedicated Layer2 blockchains within the Ethereum ecosystem in the future.

This is not a theoretical framework but a practical application that has already been implemented. Ethereum Layer2 has formed institutional use cases, achieving scalable deployment and becoming the core support for Ethereum’s “business-friendly” characteristics. Here are some examples:

• Coinbase built the Base blockchain on Ethereum Layer2, relying on Ethereum’s security and liquidity while creating new revenue streams;
• Robinhood is building a dedicated blockchain that will integrate tokenized stocks, prediction markets, and various assets, constructed based on Ethereum Layer2 technology;
• SWIFT (the global banking information transmission network) adopted the Ethereum Layer2 network Linea to conduct blockchain-based settlement business;
• JPMorgan deployed a tokenized deposit business on the Ethereum Layer2 network Base;
• Deutsche Bank is building a public permissioned blockchain network based on Ethereum Layer2, laying the groundwork for more banks to establish Layer2 networks…

The value of Layer2 lies not only in customization but also in being the best business model in the blockchain space. Layer2 integrates Ethereum’s global security while achieving over 90% profit margins through operations, opening up new revenue sources for enterprises.

For institutions adopting blockchain technology, this is the best way to have the best of both worlds — leveraging Ethereum’s security and liquidity while maintaining their profit margins, all while operating in a dedicated environment within the Ethereum ecosystem. Robinhood’s choice to build its own blockchain on Ethereum Layer2 is based on this consideration: “Building a truly decentralized secure chain is extremely challenging… With Ethereum, we can obtain security guarantees by default.”

The global financial market will not concentrate on a single blockchain, but the global financial system can achieve synergy through an interconnected network — that network is the Ethereum and its Layer2 ecosystem.

Regulatory Environment Changes

Without regulatory support, a fundamental upgrade of the global financial system would be out of the question. Financial institutions are not tech companies and cannot innovate through “rapid trial and error.” The circulation of high-value assets and funds requires a complete regulatory framework, and the United States is playing a leading role in this field:

• Under the leadership of SEC Chairman Paul Atkins, the first regulatory framework supporting innovation has been established since Ethereum’s birth in 2015. Institutions have actively embraced asset tokenization, and the financial system is preparing to migrate to digital infrastructure. Atkins himself stated, “All markets in the U.S. will achieve on-chain operations within the next two years.”
• The U.S. Congress also supports the responsible adoption of blockchain technology. The “GENIUS Act” passed in 2025 (mentioned earlier in the “Stablecoins” section) and the upcoming “CLARITY Act” (which will establish a comprehensive framework for asset tokenization and public blockchain infrastructure) have incorporated blockchain into the legal system, providing clear guidance for financial institutions to apply this technology.
• The Depository Trust & Clearing Corporation (DTCC), although not a government agency, is the core infrastructure operator of the U.S. securities market. This organization has fully embraced asset tokenization, allowing assets deposited with the Depository Trust Company (DTC) to circulate on public blockchains.

Over the past decade, the blockchain ecosystem has long been in a “regulatory gray area,” suppressing its institutional application potential. Now, under U.S. leadership, the regulatory environment has shifted from “resistance” to “support.” The stage for Ethereum to become the “best business platform” and to thrive has been fully established.

ETH: Institutional Treasury Asset

Ethereum has established its position as the “safest blockchain,” making it the default choice for institutional adoption. Based on this, ETH will be revalued in 2026, becoming a “class of institutional-grade value storage asset” alongside BTC.

The blockchain ecosystem will have more than one value storage asset: BTC has established its “digital gold” status, while ETH is becoming “digital oil” — a value storage asset that is income-generating, practical, and driven by underlying ecological economic activities.

MicroStrategy, as the enterprise holding the most Bitcoin, has led BTC to become a value storage asset. Over the past four years, MicroStrategy has continuously incorporated BTC into its treasury assets, advocating the value concept of BTC, making it a core category of institutional digital asset holdings.

Now, the Ethereum ecosystem has seen the emergence of four “MicroStrategy-like” enterprises driving ETH to achieve similar breakthroughs:

• BitMine Immersion (Ticker: BMNR), operated by Tom Lee;
• Sharplink Gaming (Ticker: SBET), operated by Joe Lubin and Joseph Chalom;
• The Ether Machine (Ticker: ETHM), operated by Andrew Keys;
• Bit Digital (Ticker: BTBT), operated by Sam Tabar.

MicroStrategy holds 3.2% of the circulating supply of BTC. In the past six months, the aforementioned four enterprises holding ETH have collectively purchased approximately 4.5% of the circulating supply of ETH — and this process is just beginning.

As these four companies continue to add ETH to their balance sheets, institutional ownership stakes in these ETH-holding companies are quickly rising, and ETH is expected to be revalued, becoming a class of institutional-grade value storage asset alongside BTC.

Ethereum Predictions for 2026: 5x Growth

Tokenized Assets: 5x Growth to $100 Billion

By 2025, the total value of tokenized assets on the blockchain increased from approximately $6 billion to over $18 billion, with 66% deployed on Ethereum and its Layer2 networks.

The global financial system has just begun its asset tokenization process, with JPMorgan, BlackRock, Fidelity, and other institutions already positioning Ethereum as the default platform for high-value tokenized assets.

We predict that by 2026, the total scale of tokenized assets will achieve 5x growth, reaching nearly $100 billion, with the vast majority deployed on the Ethereum network.

Stablecoins: 5x Growth to $1.5 Trillion

Currently, the total scale of stablecoins on public blockchains is $308 billion, with approximately 60% deployed on Ethereum and its Layer2 networks (if we include Ethereum Virtual Machine-compatible chains that may become Ethereum Layer2 in the future, this ratio will reach 90%).

Stablecoins have become a strategic asset for the U.S. government. The U.S. Treasury has repeatedly stated that stablecoins are a core initiative to solidify the dollar’s dominance in the 21st century. Currently, the total circulation of dollars is $22.3 trillion. With the implementation of the “GENIUS Act” and the large-scale launch of stablecoin applications, it is expected that 20%-30% of dollars will migrate to public blockchains.

We predict that by 2026, the total market value of stablecoins will achieve 5x growth, reaching $1.5 trillion, with Ethereum playing a dominant role in this process.

ETH: 5x Growth to $15,000

ETH is rapidly developing into an institutional-grade value storage asset alongside BTC. ETH is the “call option” for the growth of blockchain technology, and its value growth will benefit from the following trends:

• Expansion of asset tokenization scale
• Widespread application of stablecoins
• Institutional adoption of blockchain
• The financial system’s upgrade to the internet era’s “ChatGPT moment” (referring to the pivotal point of industry transformation brought about by technological breakthroughs)

Holding ETH is akin to holding a stake in the “new financial internet.” Its value growth logic is clear: increases in user scale, asset scale, number of applications, Layer2 networks, and transaction frequency will all drive up the value of ETH.

We predict that by 2026, ETH will achieve at least 5x value growth (with a market cap reaching $2 trillion, comparable to the current BTC market cap), ushering in the “NVIDIA moment” for ETH (referring to a critical phase of explosive growth similar to NVIDIA’s due to the AI wave).

Ethereum: The Best Platform for Conducting Business

By 2026, discussions about “why to adopt blockchain” will be a thing of the past. Institutions are now fully competing in asset tokenization, stablecoin applications, and customized blockchain deployments, with the structural upgrade of the global financial system having already begun.

When institutions choose blockchain infrastructure, their priority considerations include: long operational records, application precedents, security, liquidity, availability, and risk levels — and Ethereum performs best across all dimensions. If companies have the following needs, Ethereum will be the ideal choice:

• Looking to improve profit margins? Costs can be reduced through asset tokenization, and transaction fees can be minimized by using stablecoins, while building dedicated blockchains based on Ethereum.
• Looking to open new revenue sources? Structured products can be built on the Ethereum platform, new asset types can be launched, and proprietary stablecoins can be issued.
• Looking for a digital upgrade of business operations? The Ethereum platform can be leveraged to optimize operational processes, automate accounting and payments, and reduce manual reconciliation work.

2025 will be a turning point for Ethereum’s development: infrastructure upgrades will be completed, pilot projects by institutions will be scaled, and the regulatory environment will turn favorable.

In 2026, the global financial system will welcome its “internet moment” — and this transformation will occur on Ethereum, the best platform for conducting business.