Cryptocurrency will go mainstream in 2025: Six trends to watch

Author: Mark Greenberg, Head of Global Consumer Business at Kraken

Translated by: Plain Language Blockchain

Looking ahead to 2025, cryptocurrencies are playing an increasingly important role in shaping the changing financial landscape. From their gradual inclusion in diversified investment portfolios to the development of blockchain-driven financial services, cryptocurrencies continue to have a profound impact on traditional finance.

This year, as trust, accessibility, and innovation continue to grow, cryptocurrencies will achieve deeper integration in mainstream financial strategies. Here are the six trends I’m most concerned about in the coming 2025.

1. Cryptocurrency becomes an essential component of an ideal investment portfolio

The historical asymmetric return characteristics of cryptocurrencies make it increasingly difficult for investors to justify not including them in their portfolios.

In 2025, strategies like DCA will continue to gain favor, allowing investors to start with small investments and steadily increase their holdings. I expect that methods that promote gradual familiarity with this asset class will accelerate in the new year.

2. Crypto platforms will focus on providing customers with medium- and long-term wealth accumulation strategies, with trust as the biggest differentiator

In 2025, trading platforms and crypto platforms will shift their product strategies to provide customers with solutions for medium- and long-term wealth accumulation. The basis of these services will be to earn income through stablecoin holdings, and to layer more complex products and services on top of this.

Given the lessons learned from the collapse of FTX, Celsius, and Voyager in the last cycle, customers will pay more attention to the trust, security, and durability of the platform when choosing how to access these opportunities.

3. The stablecoin market will usher in the first real challenge to the existing giants, and users will be the main beneficiaries

It is no secret that the stablecoin market has long been dominated by Tether and USDC. In 2025, these two giants will face real competition for the first time, as a new generation of stablecoins will be launched, challenging the two existing leaders with their regulatory and regional advantages.

This competition will benefit users, who will have more tools to manage digital fiat currencies, and the adoption of alternative tokens will also help manage counterparty risk for stablecoin issuers.

4. Bitcoin will gain more mainstream attention when inflation rebounds

Some analysts predict that inflation may remain above the Fed's 2% target for a long time. In the past few years, everyone in the Western world has experienced the continuous decline in the value of fiat currencies for the first time since the 1970s.

Bitcoin's fixed supply - which gold cannot provide - may drive more mainstream recognition of its inflation-resistant value proposition. This will promote more people to adopt Bitcoin as a value storage asset to protect wealth in the context of fiat currency depreciation.

5. Reduced volatility in the crypto market

Over the past decade, the volatility of cryptocurrencies has generally been on a downward trend. This is because more adoption brings more liquidity, making the market less susceptible to sharp price fluctuations.

As ETFs make cryptocurrencies accessible to more investors, we expect volatility in the crypto markets to continue to decline. This could make cryptocurrencies more attractive to investors with higher risk tolerance (and provide support for strategies like direct asset allocation (DCA)).

6. A new generation of banking services based on cryptocurrencies goes mainstream

We have already begun to see new investment products - such as money market funds - launched on different blockchains. Traditional financial institutions have recognized and are taking advantage of the efficiency gains brought by this technology, as well as its ability to open up products for entirely new markets.

In 2025, I expect more familiar financial products to be built and brought to market on the blockchain - including payments, regular savings, high-yield savings accounts, credit cards, loans, etc.

7. Summary: 2025: Cryptocurrency Moves to the Main Stage

In 2025, the maturity of the cryptocurrency market will usher in a new era of opportunity and stability for investors and institutions. Whether it is the mainstream adoption of Bitcoin as a store of value, the emergence of competitive stablecoins, or platforms prioritizing the development of long-term wealth accumulation strategies, the influence of cryptocurrency will further expand into the financial world.

With trust and accessibility at its core, this year will be a turning point for cryptocurrency to consolidate its position as an important pillar in the modern financial ecosystem.