Fidelity Digital Assets Says Crypto’s Quiet 2025 Sets Up a Big 2026
Fidelity Digital Assets projects that digital assets will undergo a significant transformation in the next few years, moving from niche experiment to structural component of the financial industry.
That projected transition was emphasized by Fidelity’s 2026 Look Ahead research report and further elaborated by Chris Kuiper, Fidelity’s VP of Research.
Behind the Scenes: Rebooting the Financial Industry
Though 2025 was relatively flat in terms of price charts, Fidelity’s research suggests that the industry spent the year quietly rebuilding its infrastructure, regulatory frameworks, and institutional workflows, setting the stage for a breakout year in 2026. This evolution is largely taking place behind the scenes through regulated products, custody solutions, and institutional strategies.
Kuiper supports the notion, pointing to numerous announcements from major banks and brokerages indicating their commitment towards building digital asset capabilities.
“Every major bank announced last year that they intend to build some form of capability in digital assets,” he stated. While the impact may not be immediately apparent, Kuiper emphasized, “This is not going away.”
From Skepticism to Acceptance
One significant shift in 2025 was a cultural milestone. It marked the first year that market participants stopped declaring Bitcoin “dead,” signaling broader acceptance and a move away from fringe speculation towards an anticipated future for the technology.
As digital assets inch closer to integration with capital markets via exchange-traded products (ETPs), derivatives, tokenization, and evolving legal frameworks, they become accessible to a broader audience of investors.
Institutional Demand: Beyond Synthetic Exposure to Strategic Reserves
Fidelity foresees institutions playing a vital role in driving the crypto evolution. They anticipate firms expanding synthetic exposure through derivatives and structured products, allowing them to participate in digital asset returns without diminishing Bitcoin’s traditional appeal as a reserve asset.
Strategic companies are expected to continue building Bitcoin reserves, whereas more conservative corporate treasuries may make their first tentative steps into the space.
Behind those decisions lie slow-moving but powerful capital allocators: pensions, endowments, and foundations, traditionally cautious segments that only recently have started exploring crypto allocations.
“The big pools of money, pensions, endowments, they’ve got boards and long processes to get approval,” Kuiper explained. However, signs of change are starting to emerge – Harvard’s endowment garnering headlines for its digital asset exposure in 2025 might just be the beginning.
Wealth Managers, RIAs, and the Retail Frontier
One potential seismic shift that Kuiper sees on the horizon is in the advisory ecosystem.
Although many U.S. financial advisors have the technical capacity to offer Bitcoin and other digital assets to clients, the process has been complex, involving numerous hoops to jump through and hurdles related to risk tolerance. However, this is changing, as wealth managers and RIAs are expected to start offering crypto to more clients.
With tens of trillions of dollars under advisement across RIAs and wire houses, a gradual uptake over several years represents a structural shift that many may not be fully appreciating. As advisors steadily allocate to BTC and other assets, they will create a consistent bid in markets – a demand floor that differs fundamentally from the wild sentiment-driven cycles of earlier years. Although it’s not instantaneous, it’s persistent.
Quantum Concerns and Innovation
Fidelity’s research also touches on emerging technological issues that could impact 2026, including the potential impact of quantum computing on cryptographic security and the rise of “quantum-ready” solutions in custody and infrastructure.
While new blockchain layers and tokens are already positioning themselves as quantum-resistant, custodians are preparing to address evolving security needs proactively.
Crypto Regulation as a Catalyst?
On the regulatory front, Kuiper flagged U.S. market structure legislation as potentially pivotal for institutional integration.
“If that passes, in my opinion it will pave the way for traditional finance players and intermediaries to get the green light to continue to build,” he said. This development could serve as an accelerant for bridges between crypto and legacy markets.
Foundation Building over Fireworks
When considering 2026, Kuiper’s answer is not grand fanfare but foundation-building.
“2026 may, in fact, follow a similar trajectory to what occurred in 2025, with digital assets continuing to integrate into the traditional financial system,” he stated.
He added that continued regulatory clarity could potentially catalyze momentum, enabling ongoing institutional participation and gradually drawing capital from pensions, endowments, and foundations into the digital asset space as regulatory barriers evolve.
That aligns with Fidelity’s research view that while 2025 ended flat on price, structural tailwinds such as pension allocations, regulatory clarity, and deeper market infrastructure suggest that digital assets could be on course for renewed all-time highs in the next year.
