The 4 Big Crypto Trends Coinbase Ventures Is Betting On for 2026

Core Insights - Coinbase Ventures identifies four strategic themes expected to drive crypto innovation in 2026, focusing on Real-World Asset (RWA) perpetual contracts, specialized trading infrastructure, next-generation decentralized finance (DeFi), and artificial intelligence (AI) and robotics [1] Group 1: Real-World Asset (RWA) Perpetual Contracts - RWA perpetual derivatives provide synthetic exposure to off-chain assets, offering a faster and more flexible way to deliver on-chain exposure without the need to custody the underlying asset [2] - The market for RWAs has seen significant growth, increasing from approximately $13.8 billion to around $36 billion in on-chain value, with the number of asset holders rising to 550,194, marking a 7.58% increase over the past month [3] Group 2: Specialized Trading Infrastructure - The focus on specialized exchanges and trading terminals is highlighted, with Proprietary Automated Market Makers (Prop-AMMs) gaining traction across Solana, protecting liquidity providers from harmful flows [5] - Proprietary AMMs accounted for 13% to 24% of Solana's total DEX volume through 2025, surpassing traditional AMMs in DEX volume for the first time in September, with HumidiFi generating nearly 50% of all SOL-stablecoin DEX trading volume that month [6] - Prediction market aggregators are expected to emerge as a dominant interface layer, combining fragmented liquidity and offering advanced tools currently missing from the sector, indicating greater market sophistication [7]