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In a thread on X, Hitesh Malviya, co-founder of DYOR—a free on-chain analytics platform—unveiled his set of crypto predictions for the year 2025. Malviya outlines pivotal trends and shifts expected to shape the crypto landscape. Below are the top 15 predictions that stakeholders and enthusiasts should closely monitor. Top 15 Crypto Predictions For 2025 #1 US Regulation Of the Crypto Market In 2025 Malviya anticipates the formalization of the United States’ regulatory framework for cryptocurrencies by 2025. “The US crypto regulation framework has been under discussion for the past two years, but we’re yet to see any approval on it,” he states. He further predicts that during the Trump presidency, favorable regulations will emerge, significantly bolstering sectors with robust cash flows, particularly decentralized finance (DeFi). #2 Sustained Memecoin Popularity Despite anticipated regulatory interventions, Malviya expects the memecoin sector to regain its momentum. “Most of the memes will eventually have a short term hit when the regulation framework is introduced in the USA, as I don’t see them becoming part of it,” he explains. He further forecasts that regulation will “eventually create a clear divide between hyperspeculative trading assets and assets with some sort of fundamental value associated with them.” Nonetheless, like in 2024, the “majority of people will choose memes over fundamentally backed assets, even if they are not recognized by the government,” Malviya predicts, adding, “meme mania will only grow—more participants will join in the hope of changing their lives. The casino will only get bigger with time.” #3 Expansion Of Hyperspeculative Markets Beyond memecoins, Malviya foresees significant growth in hyperspeculative markets, particularly within prediction markets for events, news, affairs and almost everything. “Memes are not the most hyper-speculative market that crypto offers—prediction markets are the bigger fish in the pond. […] Prediction market platforms like Polymarket will eventually capture the largest audience in 2025,” he notes. #4 DeFi Renaissance A resurgence in DeFi is a cornerstone of Malviya’s predictions. He projects that DeFi will become a focal point for mature investors, with total value locked (TVL) in DeFi protocols surpassing $250 billion by the end of 2025. “Money markets like AAVE will eventually attract more TVL,” Malviya asserted, highlighting the role of Donald Trump’s crypto project World Liberty Financial as a key growth catalyst. “Some DeFi coins will also hit $30B-$50B market caps next year,” the expert added. Related Reading: Is The Crypto Bull Run Over? Top Exec Discusses The Market Crash #5 On-Chain Commodities Trading The integration of commodities into blockchain ecosystems is expected to gain traction. Malviya forecasts, “Different types of commodities will eventually be offered for trading on many DEXs in 2025.” Ostium Labs is identified by the expert as an early mover in this domain, with expectations that numerous projects will launch on-chain commodity trading platforms. #6 Stablecoin Market Cap Reaches $500 Billion The stablecoin sector is poised for substantial growth, with Malviya forecasting a market capitalization of $500 billion. “Many new stablecoins will eventually capture some market share from big players like USDC and USDT,” he remarked. The Reserve Protocol, facilitating asset-backed stablecoins, is singled out as a promising initiative within this expansion. #7 Rise of AI Art NFTs Artificial Intelligence-driven art NFTs are projected to garner significant attention. “Some AI artists, like Refik Anadol, can steal the maximum attention from NFT art collectors next year,” Malviya predicts. He anticipates that AI Art NFT collections may achieve floor prices reaching 100 Ethereum (ETH). Related Reading: Bitwise Exec Reveals His Personal Top 3 Crypto Predictions For 2025 #8 Staking-Driven Airdrop Mechanisms Malviya forecasts that Polygon and EigenLayer are going to have a series of major token launches next year. “I am anticipating that Polygon and EigenLayer staking will probably bring a couple of ecosystem airdrops for holders,” he explained. #9 Peak And Decline Of Initial AI Offerings (IAOs) The initial phase of IAOs is expected to reach its zenith, followed by a contraction. “IAOs are currently going through the first phase,” Malviya noted, cautioning that oversaturation will lead to the decline of many AI agents. “Only a few agents with quality data training and a clear purpose will manage to survive the AI agent winter, which is going to happen at some point next year,” the expert cautions. #10 Perpetual Bull Market Perception Malviya suggests that the bull market will persist in perception but will not be as straightforward as in the past where every altcoin surged at the same time. “That’s the saddest part of this prediction list—most people will remain delusional about a bull market, just like they are now. The market’s nature will remain rotational for a few more months,” he stated. He foresees a major correction resembling a bear cycle, yet expects an unexpected recovery influenced by potential black swan events: “I am expecting a major correction, which might resemble a bear cycle in 2025, but it will surprise people with an unexpected recovery, aligned with some potential black swan events.” #11 Focus On Privacy-Based Projects Post-regulatory clarity under Trump, privacy-centric projects are projected to gain prominence. “Confidential transactions and private computation would become a necessity at some point,” Malviya emphasized. Projects like Nillion are expected to attract substantial attention within the DeFi and DeAI sectors, catering to the growing demand for privacy solutions. #12 SUI Surpassing Solana In Daily Transactions The SUI blockchain, leveraging the SocialFi narrative, is anticipated to eclipse Solana in daily transaction volumes. “SUI is currently cooking the SocialFi narrative. Most of the application activities on SUI come from their SocialFi app, which directly deals with the creator economy. I am expecting that some of the apps from SUI will eventually crack the creator economy code and bring the masses onchain, eventually surpassing Solana in daily transaction metrics.” #13 Intense Competition Among Alternative Virtual Machines (AltVMs) The battle among AltVMs is set to intensify, with Malviya identifying contenders like Monad, MegaETH, Berachain, HyperVM, Sonic, and Sei. “One of them will capture 75% of the market share within 12 months after launch,” he predicts, attributing success to community support and developer relationships. Malviya expresses a particular interest in MegaEth Labs as a potential market leader. #14 Mainstream Adoption Of Web3 Wallets Web3 wallets are expected to achieve mainstream status, facilitated by enhanced user onboarding and intuitive interfaces. “Web3 wallets are going to become super easy for onboarding and usage next year,” Malviya states. The emergence of super apps, alongside Web3 wallets from major exchanges like OKX and Binance, is projected to drive widespread adoption through mobile platforms. #15 DEXs Capturing 30% Of Trading Volume Finally, Malviya foresees decentralized exchanges (DEXs) substantially increasing their share of trading volumes. “DEX/CEX trading volume ratio sits at 15% right now. I am expecting it to double in the next 12 months,” he asserts. The shift towards on-chain trading is attributed to the advantages of self-custody and improved onboarding technologies like account abstraction, leading to an anticipated rise in on-chain user activity. At press time, Bitcoin traded at $96,139. Featured image from iStock, chart from TradingView.com