17 Things to Look Forward to in Crypto in 2026

1. Better and smarter stablecoin deposit and withdrawal gateways

2. More "pure crypto"-style tokenization of real-world assets

3. Stablecoins opening a new cycle of upgrading the banking system

4. The internet gradually becoming a bank

5. Asset management available to everyone, not just the wealthy

6. From "know your customer" (KYC) to "know your agent" (KYA)

7. AI being used for genuinely serious research tasks

8. "Invisible taxes" on the open web

9. Privacy becoming a matter of survival for crypto

10. The future of messaging not only quantum-resistant but also decentralized

11. "Secrets as a service"

12. From "code is law" to "spec is law"

13. Prediction markets exploding in strength, scale, and intelligence

14. The rise of "staked media"

15. Crypto becoming a usable "primitive" outside of blockchain

16. Trading as just a transit point, not the final destination

17. Blockchains unleashing their full power only when laws catch up with technology