Since the cryptocurrency market did not achieve a significant rally towards the end of 2025, this only prepares 2026 for greater bullish potential, according to Matt Hougan of Bitwise.
Bitwise's investment director, Matt Hougan, is more confident that the cryptocurrency market will thrive in 2026, especially since there has not been a rally at the end of 2025.
Speaking to Cointelegraph at The Bridge conference in New York City on Wednesday, Hougan said a rally in the cryptocurrency market at the end of 2025 would have aligned with the four-year cycle thesis, which would mean that 2026 would mark the beginning of a bear market, similar to 2022 and 2018.
When asked to review his prediction about whether the cryptocurrency market will experience a boom in 2026, Hougan said: "In fact, I am more confident in that quote. The biggest risk was if we had a dizzying rise at the end of 2025 and then experienced a pullback."
Hougan said that interest in the "operation against the devaluation" of Bitcoin
, stablecoins and tokenization would continue to accelerate, while arguing that the fee change proposal from Uniswap, presented on Monday, would revitalize interest in decentralized finance protocols next year.
"I think the underlying fundamentals are just very solid," Hougan said. "I think these initial factors, institutional investment, regulatory progress, stablecoins, tokenization, I just think they are too big to be contained. So I think 2026 will be a good year."
Bitcoin can still set a new high before the year ends.
Hougan remains optimistic that Bitcoin, Ether
y Solana may establish new highs for 2026, but not as far as Arthur Hayes, director of investments at Maelstrom Fund, and Tom Lee, managing partner at Fundstrat believe.
The duo predicted a few months ago that Bitcoin and Ether could reach $250,000 and $15,000, respectively, before the year ends.
Bitcoin was trading at $101,762 and Ether at $3,416 at the close of this edition, meaning they would need to rise 145% and 340% to reach those ambitious targets.
The native crypto retail sector is "depressed"
Speaking of the current market pullback, Hougan attributed it to the "native crypto retail sector," arguing that many early investors have had a "compressed upside potential" with large sell-offs lately.
And those who expected a repeat of the bullish cycle of 2020-2021 "have received a harsh dose of reality," Hougan said.
"The native crypto retail sector is depressed, it was hit by FTX, it was hit by the memecoins debacle. It was hit because the altcoin season did not come. They suffered losses in the liquidation on October 10, and I think they are just staying on the sidelines."
On the other hand, the "traditional retail sector" is thriving, according to Hougan, who noted the increase in inflows of spot cryptocurrency exchange-traded funds (ETFs) in the last two years.
"The traditional retail sector, like my uncle, is venturing into cryptocurrencies, that part of the retail sector is still alive," Hougan said.
