Perhaps we all underestimated the impact of Coinbase launching its new issuance platform
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Perhaps we all underestimated the impact of Coinbase launching its new issuance platform
By 2026, there will be at least six billion-dollar ICOs through platforms like Coinbase.
Navigating Web3 tides with focused insightsBy: Matt Hougan, Chief Investment Officer at Bitwise
Translated by: AididioJP, Foresight News
One core idea behind investing in cryptocurrency is that it will reshape the financial industry's infrastructure.
So far, we can identify three areas where tangible progress has already been made:
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Bitcoin is reshaping gold’s inflation-hedging properties
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Stablecoins are reshaping the U.S. dollar
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Tokenization is reshaping trading and settlement
While these transformations are still in their early stages, the trend is already clear. I believe most assets will eventually be tokenized, most dollars will circulate via stablecoins, and Bitcoin will achieve broad acceptance similar to gold.
These represent multi-trillion-dollar opportunities—enough to fuel a generational bull market in crypto. But just this Monday, we entered a fourth critical domain: capital formation. I believe this will become the defining theme of the crypto space in 2026.
Below, I’ll explain what exactly happened, why it matters, and how to position for this investment opportunity if my thesis holds.
First, some background
Capital formation is one of the most important functions in finance. It enables entrepreneurs to raise funds, launch companies, develop products, and create jobs.
Unfortunately, the current system is rigid, inefficient, and highly unfavorable to individual investors.
Institutional capital flows to top-tier venture firms, who then invest in the best startups. These companies remain private for long periods, building value for early shareholders. When they finally go public, shares are primarily sold to other institutions. Retail investors only gain access at the very end. This system is costly and burdened with regulation, resulting in far fewer IPOs today than in the past.
Crypto attempted to change this during 2017 and 2018 through the Initial Coin Offering (ICO) boom. ICOs allowed ordinary people to invest in projects before they launched, directly connecting founders with retail investors.
But honestly, the outcome was a disaster.
Due to lack of oversight, the vast majority of ICOs turned out to be scams. Fraudsters raised billions from unsuspecting individuals and simply disappeared. The situation deteriorated so badly that the SEC had to step in, even threatening criminal charges against promoters. The crackdown in 2018 ended the ICO frenzy and plunged the crypto market into a prolonged winter.
So what’s different now?
Most people who lived through the 2017–2018 ICO bubble view it as an outright failure, exposing the worst aspects of crypto’s opacity. But a small minority saw potential.
Despite its flaws, the ICO era proved one thing: cryptocurrency can rapidly raise capital for new ventures. Compared to the high costs, complex procedures, and wealth bias of traditional IPOs, ICOs were cheaper, faster, and more equitable.
One person who recognized this potential is the current SEC Chair, Paul Atkins. His support for ICO-like initiatives isn’t surprising: before joining the SEC, he co-chaired the Token Alliance, an organization dedicated to advancing innovation in ICO-style tokens. He also served on the board of Securitize, a company focused on tokenization.
In July this year, Atkins publicly called for a new regulatory framework and risk safeguards to enable high-quality ICOs. He argues that if we can solve the problems of ICO 1.0, we could usher in a crypto-led revolution in capital formation.
This past Monday, Coinbase took a major step in that direction by announcing its ICO platform. Going forward, Coinbase will launch one rigorously vetted crypto project per month. This allows investors to participate before a project goes live, while giving founders access to a new fundraising channel. Coinbase will enforce strict standards, including team background checks, disclosure requirements, and a six-month lockup period for insiders after launch.
In short, through self-regulation, they aim to address many of the issues that plagued the 2017–2018 ICO era.
My prediction and outlook
I expect that by 2026, there will be at least six billion-dollar-scale ICOs launched via platforms like Coinbase. While still small compared to traditional IPOs—in 2024, the U.S. had 176 IPOs raising $33 billion—these successful ICOs will demonstrate that entrepreneurs can directly raise capital from investors, often on better terms than traditional IPOs.
Over time, I believe more and more projects will choose direct ICOs over conventional funding routes.
Here’s how I think about investing in this theme:
If I’m right, the most direct investment is Coinbase itself. The company is leveraging its dominant position in crypto trading to enter a new market. It’s not just the Charles Schwab of crypto—it’s Charles Schwab + Goldman Sachs + NYSE rolled into one.
A healthy ICO market will also benefit large programmable blockchains like Ethereum and Solana, since many ICO projects will be built on these platforms.
More broadly, the revival of ICOs marks another milestone for crypto. Today’s crypto ecosystem is far more compelling than it was years ago, thanks to stablecoins and tokenization. Add multi-billion-dollar fundraising via ICOs, and the narrative becomes even stronger. This suggests a broader market positioning—such as investing in index funds that hold baskets of crypto assets or crypto-related stocks. In other words, don’t focus on picking individual winners; bet on the entire race getting bigger and better.
The race is becoming increasingly exciting.
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