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159: 2026, the year of...
This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.51insights.xyz
Hey, it’s Marc.
Happy Holidays! Below are the sharpest signals we’ve seen hiding beneath the year-end noise. Here are my top 12 narratives I am interested in going into 2026:
* RWA’s & 24/7 settlements
* Stablecoin TradFi implementation and rails
* Onchain cross-border payments
* Tokenized treasuries & deposits (vs stablecoins)
* Public vs. corporate chains
* DeFi x TradFi (yield products)
* Privacy
* Quantum resistance
* Prediction markets
* Perp DEXes
* Autonomous finance
* Crypto-as-a-service infra plays
What are you looking at?
🎁 Year-end discount: Secure our limited 20% year-end discount on PRO subscriptions! Ending January 1st.
My prediction is that RWAs are going to have their comeback in 2026, starting with equities. Don’t forget: we’re still SO early.
Our highlights this week:
* Coinbase doubles down on prediction markets
* J.P. Morgan to launch crypto trading for institutional clients
* Stripe’s 1.5% tax on the old world
* Klarna integrates USDC funding
Let’s jump in 👇
🚨 We have a series of killer podcasts coming up & just opened new sponsorship slots. Grab your spot here!
Top Boardroom Reads
* 2026 Investment Outlook (BlackRock)
* Why the application layer is crypto’s next $10T opportunity, with Richard Galvin, CIO of DACM (Fiftyone)
* Understanding Stablecoins (IMF)
* 2026 Digital Asset Outlook: Dawn of the Institutional Era (Grayscale)
* 2026 crypto market outlook (Fidelity)
* OUTLOOK 2026 Promise and Pressure (JPMorgan)
* The Year Ahead: 10 Crypto Predictions for 2026 (Bitwise)
* Plan for 2026: Predictions from Our Portfolio Managers (VanEck)
* 2026 Crypto Market Outlook (Coinbase)
* 26 Crypto, Bitcoin, DeFi, and AI Predictions for 2026 (Galaxy Research)
* How Crypto will rewire finance in 2026 (SVB)
* The Man Who Can’t Be Moved (Saanya Ojha)
* Silent Sirens, Flashing For Us All (Jack Clark, Anthropic Co-Founder)
News Flash
* Aave, the biggest DeFi lending protocol, is entering governance war. Link
* Pro-crypto Michael Selig sworn in as new CFTC Chair. Link
* Amplify debuts stablecoin and tokenisation ETFs on NYSE Arca. Link
* Russia’s largest bank, Sberbank, considers launching crypto-backed loans. Link
* Solstice and Cor Prime completed the first institutional stablecoin funding trade using public blockchains. Link
Top Signals This Week
Coinbase doubles down as prediction markets go mainstream
Coinbase announced its tenth acquisition this year - The Clearing Company, a prediction markets startup. The deal closes in January 2026. This follows Coinbase’s launch of its own prediction platform, positioning it as a direct competitor to Robinhood, Interactive Brokers, and CME-FanDuel. [RELEASE]
After the U.S. election, multiple use-cases expanded beyond politics:
* Financial macro outcomes (S&P500, oil, CPI, GDP)
* Policy outcomes
* Sports + entertainment
* Broader “trade on headlines” consumer behavior
Why it matters: Prediction markets reached $44B in trading volume in 2025, with Polymarket and Kalshi accounting for $21.5B and $17.1B, respectively. Prediction markets are transitioning from niche speculative tools into a primary financial infrastructure, bridging the gap between digital assets and traditional derivatives. The sector’s projected growth to $1T by 2030 is fueled by tokenization, which allows these contracts to be used as DeFi collateral.
Be smart: The IRS has yet to guide whether gains should be classified as capital assets, gambling winnings, or Section 1256 contracts.
Fun fact: AI bots are already making millions per month on Polymarket by exploiting market inefficiencies.
Our view: Prediction markets are becoming a new consumer financial rail. The institutional and crypto-native ecosystem convergence benefits from high-frequency retail engagement. However, the distinction between "investment" and "gambling" will ultimately determine long-term liquidity and institutional adoption of these markets.
JPMorgan to launch crypto trading for institutional clients
JPMorgan is weighing spot and derivatives crypto trading for institutional clients. This is driven by regulatory change: OCC issued Interpretive Letter 1188, confirming national banks can act as “riskless principal” intermediaries, buying from one counterparty and selling to another without holding inventory risk. [NEWS]
In the last 60 days alone, the bank:
* Launched the JPMD deposit token on the Base (Ethereum L2) public blockchain.
* Arranged the first U.S. commercial paper issuance (for Galaxy Digital) on the Solana blockchain, settled in USDC.
* Launched its first tokenised money-market fund, MONY, on Ethereum.
Why it matters: J.P. Morgan doesn't need to "win" crypto-native users. By acting as an intermediary, they allow institutional allocators to trade crypto within their existing compliance and reporting frameworks. If a hedge fund can trade BTC through its JPM Prime account, the incentive to use a crypto-native exchange vanishes.
Stripe’s 1.5% tax on the old world
Stripe has launched Tempo, its payment blockchain on public testnet. It is also charging a 1.5% transaction fee for businesses accepting payments in stablecoins. While that looks pricier than pure-play crypto processors, it’s a masterclass in vertical integration. [SEE FULL ANALYSIS]
Why it matters: This isn't a fee for a blockchain transfer; it's a fee for payment acceptance. Stripe is providing the "last mile" of commerce: fraud protection, 101-country compliance, and instant conversion to USD for merchant bank accounts. For a business, 1.5% is significantly cheaper than the 3%+ often charged for cross-border credit card transactions.
Our view: Traditional card networks solved for authorization speed (the “swipe”), but they never solved for settlement speed (the “cash”). Merchants typically wait 3-5 days for international funds. Tempo collapses this timeline to near-instant settlement, eliminating the need for corporate treasuries to hold idle “buffer cash” across global subsidiaries.
🚨 We just opened new sponsorship slots for our newsletters & podcast. Want to reach 35k+ digital asset leaders? Contact us here.
Klarna swaps banks for blockchains
Klarna is bypassing traditional bank loans to fund its business using USDC. Through a partnership with Coinbase, the "Buy Now, Pay Later" giant is tapping into a $78B pool of digital dollar liquidity to settle its institutional debts faster and cheaper than ever before.[RELEASE]
How it works: Klarna needs massive amounts of short-term cash to pay merchants while they wait for customers to pay them back. Usually, they get this from consumer deposits or bank loans. Now, they’re getting it by issuing "Commercial Paper" (short-term debt) directly in USDC on public blockchains.
Why it matters: Enabled by the regulatory framework of the 2025 GENIUS Act, the partnership allows Klarna to tap into a $78B USDC market, bypassing traditional banking intermediation for faster, 24/7 settlement. It creates a dual-layer strategy: using institutional USDC for operational funding while preparing "KlarnaUSD", their own stablecoin, for consumer-facing payments in 2026.
🙌 Work with us: We arm financial institutions and digital asset leaders with bespoke research, thought leadership to shape the most important conversations, scale trust, and win business.
That’s all for now, folks.
PRO Readers: Read our alpha insights below!
– Marc & Team
💎 Investor Insights (Alpha)
View all episodes
By Marc BaumannThis is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.51insights.xyz
Hey, it’s Marc.
Happy Holidays! Below are the sharpest signals we’ve seen hiding beneath the year-end noise. Here are my top 12 narratives I am interested in going into 2026:
* RWA’s & 24/7 settlements
* Stablecoin TradFi implementation and rails
* Onchain cross-border payments
* Tokenized treasuries & deposits (vs stablecoins)
* Public vs. corporate chains
* DeFi x TradFi (yield products)
* Privacy
* Quantum resistance
* Prediction markets
* Perp DEXes
* Autonomous finance
* Crypto-as-a-service infra plays
What are you looking at?
🎁 Year-end discount: Secure our limited 20% year-end discount on PRO subscriptions! Ending January 1st.
My prediction is that RWAs are going to have their comeback in 2026, starting with equities. Don’t forget: we’re still SO early.
Our highlights this week:
* Coinbase doubles down on prediction markets
* J.P. Morgan to launch crypto trading for institutional clients
* Stripe’s 1.5% tax on the old world
* Klarna integrates USDC funding
Let’s jump in 👇
🚨 We have a series of killer podcasts coming up & just opened new sponsorship slots. Grab your spot here!
Top Boardroom Reads
* 2026 Investment Outlook (BlackRock)
* Why the application layer is crypto’s next $10T opportunity, with Richard Galvin, CIO of DACM (Fiftyone)
* Understanding Stablecoins (IMF)
* 2026 Digital Asset Outlook: Dawn of the Institutional Era (Grayscale)
* 2026 crypto market outlook (Fidelity)
* OUTLOOK 2026 Promise and Pressure (JPMorgan)
* The Year Ahead: 10 Crypto Predictions for 2026 (Bitwise)
* Plan for 2026: Predictions from Our Portfolio Managers (VanEck)
* 2026 Crypto Market Outlook (Coinbase)
* 26 Crypto, Bitcoin, DeFi, and AI Predictions for 2026 (Galaxy Research)
* How Crypto will rewire finance in 2026 (SVB)
* The Man Who Can’t Be Moved (Saanya Ojha)
* Silent Sirens, Flashing For Us All (Jack Clark, Anthropic Co-Founder)
News Flash
* Aave, the biggest DeFi lending protocol, is entering governance war. Link
* Pro-crypto Michael Selig sworn in as new CFTC Chair. Link
* Amplify debuts stablecoin and tokenisation ETFs on NYSE Arca. Link
* Russia’s largest bank, Sberbank, considers launching crypto-backed loans. Link
* Solstice and Cor Prime completed the first institutional stablecoin funding trade using public blockchains. Link
Top Signals This Week
Coinbase doubles down as prediction markets go mainstream
Coinbase announced its tenth acquisition this year - The Clearing Company, a prediction markets startup. The deal closes in January 2026. This follows Coinbase’s launch of its own prediction platform, positioning it as a direct competitor to Robinhood, Interactive Brokers, and CME-FanDuel. [RELEASE]
After the U.S. election, multiple use-cases expanded beyond politics:
* Financial macro outcomes (S&P500, oil, CPI, GDP)
* Policy outcomes
* Sports + entertainment
* Broader “trade on headlines” consumer behavior
Why it matters: Prediction markets reached $44B in trading volume in 2025, with Polymarket and Kalshi accounting for $21.5B and $17.1B, respectively. Prediction markets are transitioning from niche speculative tools into a primary financial infrastructure, bridging the gap between digital assets and traditional derivatives. The sector’s projected growth to $1T by 2030 is fueled by tokenization, which allows these contracts to be used as DeFi collateral.
Be smart: The IRS has yet to guide whether gains should be classified as capital assets, gambling winnings, or Section 1256 contracts.
Fun fact: AI bots are already making millions per month on Polymarket by exploiting market inefficiencies.
Our view: Prediction markets are becoming a new consumer financial rail. The institutional and crypto-native ecosystem convergence benefits from high-frequency retail engagement. However, the distinction between "investment" and "gambling" will ultimately determine long-term liquidity and institutional adoption of these markets.
JPMorgan to launch crypto trading for institutional clients
JPMorgan is weighing spot and derivatives crypto trading for institutional clients. This is driven by regulatory change: OCC issued Interpretive Letter 1188, confirming national banks can act as “riskless principal” intermediaries, buying from one counterparty and selling to another without holding inventory risk. [NEWS]
In the last 60 days alone, the bank:
* Launched the JPMD deposit token on the Base (Ethereum L2) public blockchain.
* Arranged the first U.S. commercial paper issuance (for Galaxy Digital) on the Solana blockchain, settled in USDC.
* Launched its first tokenised money-market fund, MONY, on Ethereum.
Why it matters: J.P. Morgan doesn't need to "win" crypto-native users. By acting as an intermediary, they allow institutional allocators to trade crypto within their existing compliance and reporting frameworks. If a hedge fund can trade BTC through its JPM Prime account, the incentive to use a crypto-native exchange vanishes.
Stripe’s 1.5% tax on the old world
Stripe has launched Tempo, its payment blockchain on public testnet. It is also charging a 1.5% transaction fee for businesses accepting payments in stablecoins. While that looks pricier than pure-play crypto processors, it’s a masterclass in vertical integration. [SEE FULL ANALYSIS]
Why it matters: This isn't a fee for a blockchain transfer; it's a fee for payment acceptance. Stripe is providing the "last mile" of commerce: fraud protection, 101-country compliance, and instant conversion to USD for merchant bank accounts. For a business, 1.5% is significantly cheaper than the 3%+ often charged for cross-border credit card transactions.
Our view: Traditional card networks solved for authorization speed (the “swipe”), but they never solved for settlement speed (the “cash”). Merchants typically wait 3-5 days for international funds. Tempo collapses this timeline to near-instant settlement, eliminating the need for corporate treasuries to hold idle “buffer cash” across global subsidiaries.
🚨 We just opened new sponsorship slots for our newsletters & podcast. Want to reach 35k+ digital asset leaders? Contact us here.
Klarna swaps banks for blockchains
Klarna is bypassing traditional bank loans to fund its business using USDC. Through a partnership with Coinbase, the "Buy Now, Pay Later" giant is tapping into a $78B pool of digital dollar liquidity to settle its institutional debts faster and cheaper than ever before.[RELEASE]
How it works: Klarna needs massive amounts of short-term cash to pay merchants while they wait for customers to pay them back. Usually, they get this from consumer deposits or bank loans. Now, they’re getting it by issuing "Commercial Paper" (short-term debt) directly in USDC on public blockchains.
Why it matters: Enabled by the regulatory framework of the 2025 GENIUS Act, the partnership allows Klarna to tap into a $78B USDC market, bypassing traditional banking intermediation for faster, 24/7 settlement. It creates a dual-layer strategy: using institutional USDC for operational funding while preparing "KlarnaUSD", their own stablecoin, for consumer-facing payments in 2026.
🙌 Work with us: We arm financial institutions and digital asset leaders with bespoke research, thought leadership to shape the most important conversations, scale trust, and win business.
That’s all for now, folks.
PRO Readers: Read our alpha insights below!
– Marc & Team
💎 Investor Insights (Alpha)