Bitwise CEO Says 2026 Will Be a Year of Generational Change in Crypto

Bitwise Chief Executive Officer Hunter Horsley said 2026 will mark a generational shift in the crypto market.

In a post on X on June 6, Horsley wrote that many of the companies and assets that led the industry when Bitwise was founded in 2017 have since faded from the center of the market. He added that 2026 will be the year generational change unfolds in crypto.

Horsley said NEO, OmiseGo, NEM, DASH, IOTA and Bitcoin Cash, or BCH, were among the leading cryptocurrencies drawing attention at the time.

The crypto industry goes through periods of changing leadership every few years, he wrote. Some projects and companies that helped bring the industry to where it is today disappear, while others survive.

The crypto community is already feeling that shift, according to Horsley. Many people are unconsciously experiencing a sense of loss, nostalgia and uncertainty, even as a new beginning arrives. He added that a new generation is now starting and that another wave of innovation and opportunity awaits the industry.