Gate Institute: The institutionalization trend of Bitcoin will strengthen by 2026, with monetary policy relying on the evolution of economic data

PANews January 24 News, Gate Research Institute recently released the report “2025 Cryptocurrency Market Review and 2026 Outlook” which points out that in 2025, the total market capitalization of cryptocurrencies showed a clear “initial decline—rebound—and subsequent decline” trend throughout the year. The report indicates that the on-chain perpetual contract trading volume continued to expand in 2025, with significant improvements in liquidity and trading experience. Meanwhile, the prediction market trading volume is expected to surpass one billion dollars for the year, with product functions evolving from early event-based trading to pricing signals for macroeconomic conditions, policy expectations, and sports event outcomes. The crypto payments sector continues to grow supported by increased settlement efficiency of stablecoins and rising cross-border consumption demand, accelerating the penetration of stablecoins into real-world payment scenarios. From a capital perspective, in 2025, the Web3 industry completed nearly 1,000 financing deals totaling approximately $34.9 billion, with capital allocation becoming more selective. At the same time, although the number of Web3 security incidents decreased throughout the year, the scale of individual losses significantly increased, further emphasizing the importance of security audits and permission management. Looking ahead to 2026, Gate Research Institute believes that the holding structure of Bitcoin is continuing to concentrate among large institutions and professional custodians, which helps improve overall market stability. In the context of increasing uncertainty in inflation and employment prospects, monetary policy paths remain uncertain, with future interest rate cuts highly dependent on the evolution of economic data.