By Simon Forster, Managing Director, Global Co-Head of Digital Assets at TP ICAP.
Whisper it quietly, but crypto is growing up. Bitcoin has emerged as the best-performing asset of the decade, now even forming part of a US strategic reserve – unthinkable just a year ago. The GENIUS Act, the most significant piece of financial legislation since Dodd-Frank, marked a step change in US policy. Circle’s historic entrance to public markets, BlackRock’s spot Bitcoin ETF is now its most profitable product, and Ethereum quietly became the fastest asset in history to reach a $500 billion market cap. What was once considered the Wild West of retail speculation is now a hub of opportunity for banks, hedge funds and asset managers.
Regulatory clarity, landmark IPOs, and record-breaking ETF flows are now enticing institutional investors into digital assets. Spot based Bitcoin ETFs have been hugely successful, while Ethereum’s rise underscores that the momentum extends beyond a single asset. Yes, early adopters have posted spectacular gains, but what matters more is that broadening participation is reshaping market dynamics. This wave is no longer just about performance – it is altering fundamental expectations of market structure, asset classes and access in ways that extend far beyond crypto itself.
For institutions more accustomed to voice-driven trading floors or disparate electronic trading platforms, deeper questions arise beyond just ‘How do we tap the crypto opportunity?’. Now that sell-side and buy-side institutions are looking to access spot crypto , and on chain cash in the form of stablecoins are proliferating at scale it will take the smartest of them only a moment to realise that that same underlying technology and infrastructure can be used to trade any tokenised asset.
On-chain migration
The starting gun then has officially sounded for on-chain assets beyond crypto. Blockchain, a unifying technology, once dismissed as overhyped, now has regulatory and institutional backing to fulfil its potential. Amid a slew of US crypto-related policy announcements, it may have been easy to miss the launch of “Project Crypto” – an initiative from the Securities and Exchange Commission to modernise securities rules and bring America’s financial markets on-chain.
Policy-backing is important, but real-world usage is the proof that there is true value being unlocked and we are already seeing signs of this shift across markets, where commodities houses and corporates are beginning to use stablecoins rather than fiat currencies. What began as a trickle is fast becoming a flood as firms recognise the benefits of on-chain cash relative to traditional payment rails. Stablecoins, leveraging blockchain’s speed, transparency, and cost-efficiency, are poised to reshape cross-border payments, trade finance, and allow money to move in the same frictionless way information does.
Whilst stablecoins have emerged as the most obvious opportunity beyond crypto, tokenisation initiatives are gaining momentum across every asset class. The World Gold Council recently announced plans to launch a digital form of gold, dubbed “pooled gold interests” (PGIs), which will allow banks and investors to buy and sell fractionalised ownership in physical bullion. By enabling gold to be passed digitally through the ecosystem as collateral, this development could transform London’s $900bn physical gold market, turning what was traditionally a static, non-yielding asset into one that can be actively deployed. The WGC argues that digitisation will standardise gold’s role across financial markets, potentially reshaping how asset managers and banks treat the precious metal.
As more assets migrate on-chain, liquidity is evolving in ways that have not previously been possible, opening the door to interoperability between asset classes. Bitcoin can trade against gold, gold against money market funds. The first iterations of tokenised equities are entering the market, while crypto-native exchanges are expanding their coverage to traditional assets.
The silos of fiat rails and fragmented platforms are starting to break down. For institutions, the implications extend well beyond liquidity. On-chain trading enables 24/7 markets and requires new infrastructure. Traditional trading systems risk rapid obsolescence, and firms without the technology or liquidity partners to support on-chain trading will be left behind.
Cementing the direction of travel
What began with the first Bitcoin block in 2009 is now beginning to reshape wholesale markets. The gravitational pull is becoming harder for the dwindling group of “never crypto” institutions to resist, as tokenisation gains momentum and Bitcoins performance and relevance becomes impossible to ignore. Even regulators are adapting. SEC Chair Paul Atkins recently signalled a new regulatory direction with references to “Super-Apps” – enabling market intermediaries to offer a variety of products under one license. Authorities are no longer chasing the market but actively shaping its future.
The wholesale market will take time to mature as robust infrastructure across custody, prime brokerage and trading is required to ensure secure orderly, transparent and liquid markets. However, the direction of travel is clear and accelerating. Institutions must take notice of these changes now, assessing how quickly multi-asset trading will likely evolve in light of digital assets’ extraordinary rise to prominence.
The future will be on-chain. Failing to adapt doesn’t just mean missing out on the crypto opportunity, it risks long-term obsolescence as the global trading system undergoes a generational shift.
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