Hashed: Crypto will enter the "application and real economy connection" phase in 2026.

According to Mars Finance, on December 19th, crypto venture capital firm Hashed released "The Protocol Economy: 2026 Thesis." The article argues that 2025 marked a shift in crypto from "storytelling" to "execution," with real users, real transaction volume, and real revenue becoming core industry benchmarks. Stablecoins emerged as the first infrastructure to successfully implement real-world applications. 2026 will be a year of explosive application growth and real-world economic connectivity: AI will reshape Web3 development and interaction methods; privacy will become the biggest structural issue after scaling; stablecoins will evolve from payment tools to corporate working capital infrastructure; RWA will be the first to achieve large-scale application; on-chain private lending and sustainable yield markets will emerge; and ETH/BTC will remain a core indicator of the risk cycle.