Once upon a time, Bitcoin mining was the wild west. Then came Ethereum, the artsy, rule-breaking younger sibling who decided to build an entire financial system.
Fast-forward to 2025, and crypto isn’t some underground movement anymore; it’s sitting at the grown-ups’ table. Deloitte found that over half of the companies surveyed are now exploring ways to hold or use crypto on their balance sheets.
Yep, real companies, and not your friend Chad in his hoodie.
And they’re not purposefully hoarding coins. They’re exploring new ways to pay employees, manage global transactions, and fund projects using digital assets.
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ETH Is the New CFO Darling
Bitcoin gets the spotlight, but Ethereum’s stealing the show. Why? It’s an entire platform that businesses can build on.
Galaxy Research established that companies are starting to treat Ethereum (ETH) as a corporate treasury asset. Translation: ETH is becoming the new “rainy day fund.”
Even the smartest investors can’t escape the drama. Recent news reports that some firms are now worth less than the Ethereum they hold. Yikes! The market’s a rollercoaster, folks. Bring snacks and patience.
Meanwhile, TechFinancials predicts that Ethereum could surge again thanks to the Fusaka upgrades improving speed and efficiency. So yeah, ETH might be the comeback kid of 2026.
Where the Big Brains Are Betting
Institutional investors aren’t ignoring this party anymore. State Street Global Advisors believes that digital assets are now viewed as “the next frontier for markets and investors.”
Bit Digital states that public companies are looking to specialized companies to hold, manage, and stake Ethereum as a long-term treasury strategy.
One business managed to pivot from digital asset mining to building an artificial intelligence (AI)-powered, high-performance computing infrastructure. In plain English: they’re using their tech smarts to power the next era of digital assets and computing.
Staking: The New Passive Income?
If you’ve ever dreamed of making money while you nap, you’ll like this.
“Staking” entails locking up crypto to help run the network, and earning rewards in return. Think of it as the blockchain version of gaining interest from your bank… except your bank doesn’t usually increase interest by 10% overnight.
PwC reports that staking business is a major part of the digital-asset economy. For entrepreneurs, you could put your idle crypto to work instead of letting it gather virtual dust.
Enter the Cool Kids: ETPs, Tokens, and Stablecoins
Remember when crypto was “unregulated”? Well, those days are fading fast. Governments and regulators are finally catching up.
Deloitte’s ETP report calls 2026 a milestone year for Exchange-Traded Products (ETPs) tied to crypto. In other words, investors can buy shares that track crypto prices, without touching the coins themselves.
Then there’s tokenized cash, a fancy way of saying “money that moves faster.” McKinsey explains that tokenized payment systems are reshaping how businesses pay each other. Think instant transactions without waiting for the bank to “process” your payment while you age five years.
And yes, stablecoins (crypto tied to regular currency) are becoming actual business payments.
Predictions, Please!
What’s next? CryptoDnes predicts that Bitcoin and Ethereum might see huge gains by late 2026. Some say Ethereum could outperform Bitcoin due to upgrades and staking adoption.
Historically, crypto markets followed a rough “boom-and-bust every four years” vibe. However, 2026 might break that script. The prediction: less dramatic swings, more continuous growth, thanks to greater institutional presence.
The roller coaster might feel smoother, and risk might shift. New business models can assume more stability. But don’t totally relax. Crypto predictions are like weather forecasts. You might be right… until you’re very wrong.
What Should Entrepreneurs Do?
The short answer: Don’t sleep on this.
Even if you’re not investing in crypto directly, blockchain technology is changing how money, ownership, and contracts work. Businesses that understand it, even at a basic level, will have an edge.
Start by following what companies like Deloitte and McKinsey are publishing. Keep an eye on regulatory updates. And maybe consider experimenting with crypto payments or tokenized assets in small, controlled ways.
Crypto tends to be wild, weird, and occasionally whiplash-inducing. It’s also where the future is being built while the rest of us are still finding the Wi-Fi password.
You don’t have to become a blockchain guru. Just don’t be the person who says, “Wait, what’s Ethereum again?” Enlist colocation services that implement machine learning and cloud services to obtain market capitalization and higher earnings during trading activity.
In 2026, the real entrepreneurs won’t be making products. They’ll be re-engineering how value moves.
