👋 Greetings, anon,
GM. This is The Chain, where we watch the crypto market like a hawk (if hawks could use Twitter).
Here are this week's highlights:
🔍 End-of-Year Crypto Performance Review
🤔 Which DATs Failed and Which Ones Didn’t?
💥 Looking Ahead: Crypto in 2026
2025 was supposed to be crypto's victory lap. Institutional adoption! Regulatory clarity! Bitcoin to $200K! Instead, BTC ended the year down 8%, most altcoins got demolished, and the real winners were... stocks that buy crypto?
Yeah, it's been weird. But there are lessons here if you know where to look.
Let's break down what actually happened this year and what it means for 2026.
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🤔 Crypto’s End-of-Year Performance Review
Let's rip the band-aid off: Bitcoin ended 2025 down 7.93% from where it started in January.
Not exactly the "institutional adoption sends us to the moon" narrative we were sold. But the story gets weirder when you look at individual performances.
Because there have also been some wild success stories throughout the industry too (looking at you, ZEC). And how did all those digital asset treasury (DAT) companies do overall?
The Best and Worst of the Year
These are the cryptos that defied expectations (in the good OR bad sense). They’re ordered from top-performing to worst-performing.
Zcash (ZEC): +580.4%
Monero (XMR): +119.9%
OKB (OKB): +115.4%
BNB (BNB): +19.7%
Tron (TRX): +9.71%
Hyperliquid (HYPE): +4.44%
Bitcoin (BTC): -8.16%
Ripple (XRP): -10.5%
Ethereum (ETH): -15.6%
Litecoin (LTC): -26.1%
Solana (SOL): -35.3%
Chainlink (LINK): -38.7%
Cardano (ADA): -56.5%
Dogecoin (DOGE): -60%
Tough year to be a DOGE believer, yeesh.
So, the clear winners were privacy coins, and the clear losers were almost everything else. We still don’t think that a lot of people understand how historic ZEC’s run up was this year. Amidst a sea of coins that couldn’t even print a 10% rise YTD, ZEC grew more than it has in years and years over a matter of months. Unbelievable.
The DAT Games: Winners, Losers
The plot twist no one saw coming: the best way to invest in Bitcoin in 2025 was... not buying Bitcoin.
It was buying digital asset treasury company stocks. Some of them surged by insane amounts, but where do they sit at the end of the year?
Bitcoin Treasury Companies YTD Performance
Hut 8 Mining Corp (HUT): +83.46%
Riot Platforms, Inc. (RIOT): +23.90%
Tesla (TSLA): +23.20%
Metaplanet Inc. (MTPLF): +12.50%
Twenty-One Capital (XXI): +1.06%
Coinbase (COIN): -5.06%
American Bitcoin Corp (ABTC): -14.42%
Bullish (BLSH) -38.01%
Mara Income Holdings (MARA): -42.30%
Strategy (MSTR): -46.54%
Trump Media & Technology Group: -69.22%
Huge showing for Hut 8 (partnered with the Trumps to form American Bitcoin Corp.), but a BRUTAL year for Michael Saylor’s Strategy and especially for Trump Media.
We still think Cardano founder Charles Hoskinson’s take on Trump’s impact on the crypto industry holds water:
Ethereum Treasury Companies YTD Performance
Bitmine (BMNR): +318.86%
Sharplink Gaming (SBET): +18.56%
Coinbase (COIN): -5.06%
Bit Digital (BTBT): -33.81%
What’s cool about ETH treasuries vs. BTC treasuries? One word:
Yield.
ETH holders get staking rewards, BTC HODLers don’t.
Looking at 2026
Everyone thought 2025 would be crypto's breakout year. And it was! Just for infrastructure, not prices.
We get it, people are burnt out on crypto hopium. So any kind of positive thoughts about crypto for 2026 is sure to get shot down.
BUT. We have some positive thoughts about crypto for 2026 😂
To be clear, we’re not calling for $200K Bitcoin by year’s end like Standard Chartered (Oh wait. They just revised their 2025 BTC prediction from $200K to $100K. Convenient lol).
No, we’re looking at the macro conditions and institutional adoption of crypto.
1. Crypto is no longer in easy mode
The days of buying anything with "coin" in the name and watching it 10x are over. Finding the next Hyperliquid or Zcash requires actual research, not just vibes and Twitter follows.
2. Companies using crypto meaningfully will win
Look at the actual winners of 2025:
Robinhood (HOOD): +206% YTD. Crypto trading integration works
Polymarket: Not publicly traded, but processing billions in volume
Hyperliquid: was up 471% at one point. Built real infrastructure, captured real market share
The pattern is clear: buying businesses WITHIN crypto beats betting ON crypto.
3. Blue-chip cryptos are becoming long-term investments
Bitcoin and Ethereum aren't going to move like they did in 2017 or 2020. That's the cost of maturity. Institutional adoption means slower, more methodical price action.
Want those quick 10x gains? You'll probably have to buy meme coins or find stocks implementing crypto meaningfully, not just buying crypto itself.
Yeah, we think that's kind of lame too. But it's reality.
4. Institutional adoption is a double-edged sword
When Vanguard, BlackRock, Bank of America, and PNC Bank jump in, they generally don't let an asset die. That's the upside.
The downside? They also suppress volatility, potentially manipulate through size, and move at bureaucratic speed. The trade-off for legitimacy is boring price action.
Our Honest Take:
We don't see how Bitcoin stays down long-term with this level of institutional adoption. But "long-term" might mean 2-3 years, not 2-3 months.
If you're looking for quick gains, you're probably in the wrong market cycle. If you're building positions for 2027-2028, the setup might be decent.
🍟 Extra Crispy Crypto Links
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🎤 Let us know what you thought
We really appreciate you reading our newsletter, and we’d love to hear your feedback.
How was this week's edition?
⏳ Wrapping Up
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Same time next week? Sounds good.
Until next time,
- The Chain Team
This newsletter is for informational and entertainment purposes only and does not constitute financial, investment, legal, or tax advice. Nothing in this newsletter should be construed as a recommendation to buy, sell, or hold any cryptocurrency, stock, or other financial instrument.
Past performance does not guarantee future results. All investments carry risk, including the potential loss of principal. Cryptocurrency markets are highly volatile and speculative. You should never invest more than you can afford to lose.
The authors and publishers of The Chain may hold positions in the cryptocurrencies, stocks, and other assets discussed in this newsletter. We are not registered financial advisors, brokers, or investment professionals.
Always conduct your own research (DYOR) and consult with qualified financial, legal, and tax professionals before making any investment decisions. The information presented here is based on publicly available sources and may contain errors or become outdated.
By reading this newsletter, you acknowledge that you are solely responsible for your own investment decisions and any consequences thereof. The Chain and its authors assume no liability for any losses or damages resulting from reliance on information contained in this newsletter.
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