- The cryptocurrency market topped $4 tillion for the first time.
- It comes off regulatory momentum from Washington.
- Bitcoin trades near its all-time high of about $123,000.
The second half of 2025 is going to be even more impressive than the first, according to Bitwise.
That’s a bold call considering what the crypto market just did.
On Friday, the asset class crossed $4 trillion for the first time, with Bitcoin and XRP both hitting record highs, and the Washington lawmakers voting through three crypto bills.
Four drivers will fuel the industry even further, according to Bitwise’s Q2 2025 Crypto Market Review.
Washington action
After courting US lawmakers, the crypto industry is on the cusp of garnering groundbreaking legislation.
On Thursday, the House of Representatives passed three landmark crypto bills, one of which President Donald Trump will ink into law on Friday.
The Genius Act will pave the way for stablecoins to enter the country’s financial system in a big way.
A market structure bill, dubbed the Clarity Act, was also approved and seeks to define clear lines between the jurisdictions of the Securities and Exchange Commission, and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission.
Finally, the Anti-CBDC Surveillance State Act also passed. Its aim? To ban the Federal Reserve from ever issuing a digital dollar.
“Taken together, these bills are expected to significantly increase Wall Street investment in crypto, boost adoption, and reduce risk and volatility in the market,” said Bitwise.
Universal Bitcoin ETFs
Wall Street behemoths like Morgan Stanley and Wells Fargo manage trillions in assets on behalf of clients. They have also been historically slow to greenlight Bitcoin exchange-traded funds.
That’s starting to change, according to Bitwise. In the second quarter, several of these traditional finance platforms made internal progress toward ETF approvals.
“We expect additional massive unlocks in the months to come,” said Bitwise.
“By year-end, advisor access to Bitcoin ETFs could be nearly universal.”
Bitcoin ETFs have been a steady source of flows for the crypto ecosystem. Led by BlackRock’s IBIT fund, the 11 providers hold about 1.2 million Bitcoin worth about $153 billion.
Tokenising stocks
Robinhood and Kraken both launched platforms for trading tokenised equities in the second quarter of 2025, with more entrants expected to follow their lead
“Every stock, every bond, every fund can be tokenised,” BlackRock CEO Larry Fink has said.
“Expect more tokenised stock announcements including from big players,” said Bitwise. “This will raise interest in programmable blockchains like Ethereum and Solana.”
Rate cuts
Cryptocurrency investors await the Fed’s much anticipated rate cut with with bated breath.
According to Bitwise, investors now see a 57% chance of interest rate cuts by September — with two more coming before the end of the year.
Inside the Fed, there are some officials that think the first rate cut could come even sooner.
Lower interest rates have been historically good for crypto, since risk-on assets tend to outperform in easing financial environments. And with Trump breathing heavy on Fed Chair Jerome Powell to resign, that scenario could play out even sooner.
“A return to cutting could boost markets,” said Bitwise.
Pedro Solimano is DL News’ Buenos Aires-based markets correspondent. Got at a tip? Email atpsolimano@dlnews.com.