The crypto market as we know it is changing fast. The 4-year cycle? Dead. L1 dominance? Fading. Regulation? Inevitable, but not a dealbreaker. I sat down with @RyanWatkins_, co-founder of @SyncracyCapital, to break it all down. Here’s what I learned 1/x

For years, people believed Bitcoin’s 4-year cycle dictated the entire crypto market. Ryan says that’s outdated. Institutional investors don’t care about halvings—they follow liquidity cycles, macro trends, and market structure shifts. Cycles are still around, but not in the way

The biggest shift? L1s are no longer the main value drivers. Users don’t care what blockchain they’re on. They care about the apps they use. Ryan believes the app layer will flip L1s in value. The biggest winners won’t be blockchains—they’ll be the apps that dominate user

Regulation is coming. But does it matter? Ryan thinks that onchain finance will thrive regardless. Governments can slow things down, but they can’t stop crypto-native capital markets. The infrastructure is already being built.

Observing narratives over the short-term can net you big wins as an investor. Ryan explained how he and his team approach narratives that benefit from fundamentals and network effects. But the real trick? Tapping into beta plays – like Solana DEXes – to capture memecoin value

So what will it take to get crypto to the masses? If we’re talking mass adoption, Ryan argues that we might need to concede the hardcore, maximalist approach for something more consumer-friendly. Using Bitcoin for micro-payments was never going to find PMF. But products like

Ryan’s view is clear: The app layer will overtake L1s in value. L1s will compete on cost and speed. Apps will capture the real economic upside. The question isn’t which blockchain wins. The question is—which apps will define the future of crypto?

From someone who discovered crypto during the days of Silk Road and now runs a hedge fund betting on high-conviction plays, the takeaways are clear: The 4-year cycle is dead. L1 dominance is fading. Regulation won’t stop innovation. The biggest opportunities are still ahead.