The asset management firm has included tokens like HYPE, VIRTUAL, ENA, and JITO in its top 20 watchlist for Q1 2025.
Key Additions to the Watchlist
Grayscale’s December 30 research report highlighted several AI platforms and DeFi tokens added to its quarterly watchlist:
- Hyperliquid (HYPE): A high-performance Layer-1 network.
- Ethena (ENA): A decentralized finance protocol.
- Virtuals (VIRTUAL) & Grass (GRASS): AI-driven platforms.
- Jito (JTO) & Jupiter (JUP): Solana-native DeFi applications.
These tokens align with three major trends:
- Improved U.S. regulatory clarity.
- Breakthroughs in decentralized AI.
- Growth of the Solana ecosystem.
Continued Focus on Established Themes
Grayscale reiterated its interest in:
- Ethereum scaling solutions (e.g., Optimism [OP]).
- Tokenization (e.g., Chainlink [LINK]).
- DePIN (e.g., Helium [HNT]).
The report noted that smart contract platforms like Ethereum (ETH), Solana (SOL), Avalanche (AVAX), and Sui (SUI) remain highly competitive.
Market Dynamics
- Solana’s DeFi TVL surged from $1.5B in January to $8.5B by December 2024 (DeFiLlama).
- Jito earned over $100M monthly via priority fees (Cointelegraph).
Industry Outlook
Political Influence
The 2024 U.S. election saw pro-crypto policies under Donald Trump, who pledged to appoint crypto-friendly regulators and position the U.S. as a "global crypto hub" (Cointelegraph).
Emerging Trends
Executives predict growth in:
- DeFi staking.
- RWA tokenization.
- AI-agent adoption in Web3 (Raiinmaker CEO interview).
FAQs
1. Why did Grayscale add Solana DeFi tokens?
Solana’s ecosystem growth and high TVL made tokens like JTO and JUP attractive for their liquidity and innovation.
2. How does AI fit into Grayscale’s 2025 strategy?
Platforms like Virtuals and Grass leverage decentralized AI, a sector poised for expansion.
3. What’s the impact of U.S. regulations on the watchlist?
Clearer rules have boosted confidence in compliant projects like ENA and HYPE.
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