On January 25th, at the 2026 World Economic Forum (WEF) Annual Meeting in Davos, cryptocurrency and blockchain technology have completely shed their "fringe" label and become a core topic of discussion among global financial leaders and policymakers. Below are excerpts of relevant speeches from crypto industry leaders and traditional financial giants during this year's Davos meeting:
Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong revealed that during the World Economic Forum in Davos, an executive from one of the world's top ten banks told him that cryptocurrency has become the bank's "number one priority," even considered a "life-or-death matter." While not specifying the bank or executive's name, Armstrong emphasized that many financial leaders he met at the week-long event were not only open to cryptocurrency but also actively seeking entry points. "The vast majority of them are actually very supportive of cryptocurrency and see it as a significant opportunity." Tokenization was one of the most discussed trends at the Davos Forum.
In an interview with CNBC in Davos, Binance founder CZ stated that he cannot predict short-term price fluctuations of Bitcoin, but it is easy to predict its long-term performance. Looking at a one-year timeframe, he said, "I'm not sure about 2026, but I have a strong feeling that Bitcoin will enter a supercycle in 2026." The shift in the US attitude towards the crypto space is significant and will influence various aspects of the Western world. Following the US lead, many countries have also begun to change their attitudes towards crypto assets.
Executives from companies like Circle and Ripple have stated that stablecoins have become a global financial "plumbing" for cross-border payments and efficiency improvements. Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse said stablecoins are a prime example of tokenization and predicted that the crypto market will reach a record high in 2026.
BlackRock CEO Larry Fink repeatedly emphasized at Davos that the future of assets lies in tokenization, and that there is a current need to rapidly advance tokenization, placing all financial assets on a single blockchain to reduce intermediaries and corruption. He sees tokenization as a necessary trend that can cover everything from money market funds to stocks and real estate.
Overall, crypto has moved from a fringe topic to a core narrative of global financial infrastructure. Institutions have shifted from "wait-and-see" to "deployment," focusing on regulatory clarity (the US GENIUS and CLARITY Act), tokenization and scalability, stablecoin interoperability, and integration with AI. Bitcoin has also been mentioned, but mainstream discussion leans more towards practical infrastructure than pure speculation. Larry Fink, at the closing ceremony of the 2026 Davos Forum, quoted Elon Musk: "It's better to be an optimistic loser than a pessimistic winner."
