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US DOJ Obtains Legal Ownership of $400 Million Tied to Infamous Bitcoin Mixer Helix

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US DOJ Obtains Legal Ownership of $400 Million Tied to Infamous Bitcoin Mixer Helix


The U.S. Department of Justice has seized over $400 million in crypto, cash, and real estate connected to the Helix Bitcoin Mixer.

The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) has officially seized more than $400 million in cryptocurrencies, real estate, and cash linked to the Helix Bitcoin Mixer.

The forfeiture was finalized in late January 2026, concluding years of litigation against Helix’s operator, Larry Dean Harmon.

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Helix’s Illegal Activity and Harmon’s Case

Helix, which operated from 2014 to 2017, was marketed as a tumbling service designed to anonymize Bitcoin transactions. Investigators found that it had become a major hub for laundering funds connected to drug trafficking, hacking, and other illegal activities. Court filings show that Helix processed more than 354,468 Bitcoin, valued at approximately $300 million at the time, for its users.

Harmon, who also created the darknet search engine Grams, made the platform to integrate directly with major darknet markets. Its Application Programming Interface (API) allowed them to connect the service to their Bitcoin withdrawal systems, earning them a percentage of each transaction as commission and fees. Investigators also traced tens of millions of dollars in illicit proceeds from several darknet markets through the mixing service.

The Ohio-based operator of Helix was first charged in 2020 with money laundering conspiracy and operating an unlicensed money transmitting business. In August 2021, he pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit money laundering and was sentenced in November 2024 to 36 months in prison, three years of supervised release, a monetary forfeiture judgment, and seized assets.

On January 21, 2026, Judge Beryl A. Howell of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia issued a final forfeiture order, officially transferring the assets to the government.

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Regulators Ease Crackdown on Crypto Mixers

The Helix case is part of a broader regulatory crackdown on cryptocurrency mixers and privacy tools. Platforms such as Tornado Cash have also faced sanctions and enforcement actions in recent years. While crypto advocates maintain that these services can offer legitimate privacy protections, authorities continue to focus on their potential use in criminal activity.

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In a related development, blockchain entrepreneur and Coin Center fellow Michael Lewellen filed a lawsuit last year challenging the DOJ, seeking a ruling that his non-custodial crypto crowdfunding platform, Pharos, does not violate money transmission laws. The legal action argues that software developers creating non-custodial privacy tools are being unfairly targeted.

The Justice Department later announced it would no longer pursue criminal cases against crypto exchanges, developers, or users for regulatory violations. This development follows the disbanding of the National Cryptocurrency Enforcement Team (NCET), the specialized unit responsible for investigating crypto-related criminal activity.

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DeepSnitch AI Holders Capitulate to Join Digitap ($TAP) Presale: Best Crypto to Buy

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DeepSnitch AI Holders Capitulate to Join Digitap ($TAP) Presale: Best Crypto to Buy

Market behavior during drawdowns often forces a hard reset. Tools that help traders react faster lose relevance when volatility compresses opportunity, and liquidity dries up. This is why attention is moving away from analytics-heavy platforms toward structures that preserve value and generate utility regardless of market direction.

For DeepSnitch AI holders, the current environment has created a clear inflection point. Capital is rotating out of signal-based products and into fixed-entry opportunities with real usage and cash-flow logic.

That rotation explains why Digitap ($TAP) is seen as the best crypto to buy now, positioned as a defensive crypto presale built for recessionary conditions. As risk appetite contracts, the conversation around altcoins to buy favors platforms that move money, not just data.

Why DeepSnitch AI Holders Should Move to Digitap

DeepSnitch AI was built to solve information asymmetry. Its AI-driven agents monitor wallets, contracts, liquidity shifts, and sentiment across multiple chains, delivering alerts designed to improve trading outcomes. In active markets, that value proposition resonates. In slow, risk-off conditions, actionable signals become scarce, and analytics lose leverage as capital prioritizes preservation over precision.

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The platform’s reliance on constant market activity creates a dependency on volatility. When fewer trades occur and narratives stall, demand for premium alerts softens. Token utility becomes concentrated around access rather than economic throughput, leaving holders exposed to sentiment cycles rather than structural demand.

Digitap operates from a different foundation. Instead of optimizing decision-making within the market, it serves as infrastructure for price discovery outside the market. Payments, settlements, conversions, and storage continue regardless of volatility. That distinction matters when trading edges compress and capital seeks stability over timing.

For holders exiting signal-based exposure, Digitap represents a pivot from observation to utility. It facilitates day-to-day financial operations, creating demand that does not rely on speculation. This independence is why capital migration is accelerating.

How Digitap Works and What It Actually Is

Digitap is the world’s first omni-bank, designed to unify crypto and traditional finance within a single platform. It allows users to quickly exchange crypto for fiat and fiat for crypto, bridging on-chain assets with real-world banking rails through a live, downloadable app.

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At the core of the ecosystem sits the $TAP token, built around fixed supply and utility-driven demand. Total supply is capped at 2 billion tokens, with no inflation, no buy or sell tax, and no hidden minting mechanisms. Circulating supply is engineered to move in one direction only: downward, as buyback and burn activity removes tokens from the market.

$TAP is woven directly into platform functionality. The token powers staking programs, unlocks fee discounts, enables governance participation, and grants access to premium account tiers. $TAP functions as the economic engine of the ecosystem.

Demand for $TAP is tied to usage of the platform itself, not to market sentiment or trading frequency. As the app scales, token utility scales alongside it.

Crypto Presale Structure, Fees, and Real Usage

Digitap’s relevance increases in recessionary conditions, where fees and friction compound financial stress. Traditional remittance channels often charge more than 6% per transfer. Digitap compresses cross-border costs to under 1%, keeping more value in circulation and reducing erosion during periods of economic pressure.

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The platform also serves freelancers and remote earners who receive income in crypto. Funds can be converted to cash and routed toward rent, utilities, or daily expenses without navigating multiple applications or intermediaries. This turns crypto into spendable income rather than dormant capital.

Privacy and flexibility are embedded through a tiered KYC structure. No-KYC wallet options coexist with higher-limit accounts, allowing different levels of access without forcing a single compliance model. Offshore banking partnerships further reduce geographic concentration risk.

The current crypto presale price stands at $0.0467, with the next stage set at $0.0478 and a defined listing price of $0.14. This staged structure introduces predictability at a time when most assets lack clear valuation anchors. Nearly $5 million has been raised, with more than 213 million tokens sold.

Why $TAP Is the Best Altcoin to Buy Now

The market is no longer rewarding speed or signal density. It is rewarding resilience. Platforms that generate economic value outside price speculation are gaining ground as liquidity remains constrained and volatility fails to translate into opportunity.

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Digitap fits this environment precisely. It replaces high-frequency decision-making with structural utility, positioning itself as a financial layer that functions regardless of market direction. That is why it continues to surface in discussions around the best crypto to buy now.

Compared to analytics-driven tokens, $TAP benefits from real usage cycles tied to payments, remittances, and income conversion. This creates persistent demand and separates it from assets dependent on trader sentiment.

As capital rotates out of reactive tools and into foundational infrastructure, Digitap’s presale structure amplifies its appeal. With fixed pricing, growing adoption, and clear economic logic, $TAP defines what a crypto to buy now looks like in defensive conditions.

Presale https://presale.digitap.app

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Website: https://digitap.app

Social: https://linktr.ee/digitap.app

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Disclaimer: This is a Press Release provided by a third party who is responsible for the content. Please conduct your own research before taking any action based on the content.

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Top AI Crypto Wallet Development Companies in 2026 for Serious Businesses

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Eliminating Supply Chain Blind Spots with IDP

Investors with enterprise ambitions need more than marketing slides and checklists. They need clarity about which Web3 crypto wallet providers can deliver secure, compliant, and future-proof infrastructure that supports scalable revenue models. In 2026, the winning wallet partners combine hardened cryptography, account abstraction for superior UX, and production-grade AI that meaningfully reduces operational risk and customer friction. This article is written for well-informed investors evaluating strategic bets in web3 infrastructure. It focuses on technical differentiators, observable production capabilities, and the commercial trade-offs that matter when moving from proof of concept to live financial rails. Read on for a concise technical framework, the top vendor shortlist, a head-to-head feature comparison, and a rigorous 10-question crypto wallet development company evaluation.

Why 2026 Is a Defining Year for AI-Smart Crypto Wallets?

The market dynamics making 2026 pivotal are technical, regulatory, and behavioral. On the technical side, account abstraction and smart account primitives have matured into usable production tooling, enabling programmable wallets that solve long-standing UX and recovery problems. This shift changes how cryptocurrency wallet solutions are built and consumed because it decouples signature management from the user experience and enables sponsored gas, batched operations, and policy-driven approvals. At the same time, multi-party computation and threshold signature schemes are moving from academic proofs into operational custody solutions, offering enterprises key-management alternatives that reduce single-point risk and regulatory exposure.

AI is no longer an experimental add-on. Leading teams embed machine learning for real-time anomaly detection, risk scoring, and personalized usage assistance, which materially lowers fraud losses and onboarding friction. Finally, enterprise demand is rising as financial institutions and high-net-worth services adopt tokenized assets and require wallets that can integrate with existing KYC, treasury, and audit systems. The intersection of account abstraction, MPC-class key management, and production AI is why investors should re-evaluate wallet vendors in 2026 with technical scrutiny.

Top 7 AI Cryptocurrency Wallet Development Companies of 2026

1. Antier Solutions

Antier has evolved into a platform-first provider for enterprise crypto wallets that fuse production AI, multi-model custody, and broad chain interoperability. Their white-label AI smart crypto wallet product emphasizes intelligent transaction processing, behavioral recovery flows, and predictive risk analytics designed for high-compliance environments. Antier presents architecture and runbook artifacts aimed at enterprise buyers, showing an operational approach to MPC and hybrid custody and clear support for multi-chain EVM ecosystems. For investors, Antier’s strength is not only in delivery speed but also in a repeatable architecture that embeds AI into the signing and policy layers so that fraud detection, onboarding automation, and recovery are measurable features rather than add-ons. This makes Antier the most compelling partner for institutional-grade wallet infrastructure.

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2. Oodles Blockchain

Oodles brings a decade of blockchain engineering to mobile crypto wallet development projects with a service model built for custom enterprise implementations. Their wallet practice focuses on cross-platform wallets, DeFi integrations, and NFT support, and they have published explorations of AI in wallet monitoring and personalized insights. Oodles is strongest where deep integration with enterprise systems is required, including payment rails and legacy back ends. For investors, this firm is a reliable engineering house capable of producing robust non-custodial and custodial wallets quickly; their AI positioning is currently oriented toward transaction monitoring and fee optimization rather than embedded MPC. Use Oodles when you need platform engineering and rapid, audit-ready delivery for multi-chain wallets.

  • Real-time transaction monitoring with rule-based AI alerting.
  • Fee optimization suggestions driven by transaction pattern analysis.
  • Personalized in-wallet recommendations using market and user signals.
  • Integration patterns for embedding AI outputs into enterprise reporting.
Choose Wallet Infrastructure That Scales With Demand

 3. PixelPlex

PixelPlex positions itself at the intersection of blockchain and intelligent assistants, offering wallets that act as “co-pilots” for users. Their public material highlights proactive scam detection, predictive insights for asset management, and an emphasis on UX that reduces human error in transactions. This renowned crypto wallet provider has experience scaling projects and building wallet layers that integrate with exchanges, DeFi rails, and custodial services. From an investor standpoint, PixelPlex is attractive where productized AI features, such as proactive scam alerts and contextual recommendations, are required alongside professional-grade engineering and proven delivery for consumer and institutional clients. Expect a strong UX and AI pairing, but validate custody model specifics for enterprise risk tolerance.

  • Client-side assistive AI that reduces user error and improves retention.
  • Proactive scam detection leveraging behavioral and network signals.
  • Predictive portfolio insights that feed in-wallet recommendations.
  • Plug-and-play AI modules for rapid feature integration.

 4. BlocktechBrew

BlocktechBrew is a pragmatic wallet developer focused on white-label blockchain wallet apps with a strong emphasis on security and time to market. Their offering is oriented toward entrepreneurs and enterprises seeking complete wallet stacks, browser extensions, and mobile clients. BlocktechBrew’s AI footprint is currently focused on analytics and automated security checks that are integrated into the development lifecycle. For investors, the company represents a cost-effective engineering partner able to deliver MVPs and iterate rapidly; their strength is execution velocity rather than platformized AI governance. For portfolio companies that need fast, secure shipping of wallet products with AI-powered monitoring, BlocktechBrew is a sensible operational choice.

  • Automated security and integrity checks during development and CI.
  • Transaction analytics modules for post-deployment monitoring.
  • White-label AI hooks for swapping in enterprise models.
  • Lightweight fraud detection pipelines for early production stages.

 5. BlockchainX

BlockchainX markets end-to-end Web3 cryptocurrency wallet solutions and white-label products aimed at businesses that need rapid deployment and rebranding. Their products emphasize multi-asset support and customization for local regulatory environments. BlockchainX is best for enterprises that want a full productized wallet stack with roadmap acceleration rather than heavy R&D in cryptographic custody. Their AI claims are more conservative and typically implemented as analytics and reporting layers to aid compliance and support teams. Investors should view BlockchainX as a commercial, modular provider suitable for scaling standard wallet features quickly across geographies.

  • Compliance and reporting dashboards powered by analytics.
  • Customer support augmentation via AI-summarized event logs.
  • Automated KYC/AML signal enrichment feeding the wallet audit trail.
  • Configurable AI alerts for operational monitoring.

 6. Rapid Innovation

Rapid Innovation focuses on secure blockchain wallet development with an emphasis on UX, authentication, and integrations for web and mobile. Their public material highlights features such as multi-factor authentication, QR flows, and session controls. Rapid Innovation complements AI with applied analytics and automation that strengthen onboarding and reduce support costs. For investors, Rapid Innovation is a reliable engineering partner when robust authentication and solid engineering practices are primary goals and when you prefer to integrate third-party or bespoke AI services. Verify their custody posture and ask for AI performance metrics during diligence.

  • AI-assisted onboarding flows to reduce drop-offs.
  • Analytics-driven session and fraud detection.
  • Modular AI connectors for third-party risk engines.
  • Emphasis on secure authentication with AI-backed anomaly detection.

How Does Antier Stand Out From Other Vendors?

In 2026, market leaders will be defined by products users actually adopt, not those that are merely deployed. We build with that outcome in mind.


You must have heard Investors asking often, what does a company they hire bring them that others do not? Well, Antier has all the answers to it. Below is the curated list of capabilities that Antier holds rather than marketing claims.

Feature area Antier Typical other vendors
AI-powered transaction analytics Productionized predictive analysis & UX personalization. Public docs reference AI-native wallet modules. Most vendors offer fraud detection or analytics, but many present these as integrations or roadmaps.
Key management options Multi-model: seedless experiences, MPC and hybrid custody options, enterprise recovery flows. Predominantly, seed phrase, multisig, HSM options. Few demonstrate integrated MPC in public collateral.
Multi-chain support Claims broad EVM coverage and chain integrations; designed for cross-chain wallet UX. Many vendors support multiple chains but often with narrower out-of-the-box integrations.
Account abstraction readiness Focus on smart-wallet flows and sponsored transactions Many provide ERC-4337 support as part of engineering engagements, but adoption varies.
Enterprise compliance & audit support Emphasizes enterprise controls, audit readiness and recoverability Most firms offer integration support; investors should request SOC2 and third-party audit evidence
Turnkey vs custom Balance of white-label products and custom integrations Several vendors focus primarily on white-label or custom, based on business needs

It is always suggested that you partner with an experienced team of blockchain experts who are adept at crafting impactful and successful customized cryptocurrency wallet solutions

How to Evaluate a Wallet Development Company in 10 Questions?

For investors doing diligence, these 10 technical and operational questions reveal whether a crypto wallet service provider is enterprise-grade or merely marketing-first.

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  1. What is your key management model in production, and can you provide architecture diagrams and a failure mode analysis?
  2. Do you offer MPC or TSS-based signing? If so, provide a public audit or third-party review.
  3. How do you support account abstraction and ERC-4337 user operations? Provide sample UserOperation flows and bundler integration details.
  4. How is AI used in the stack, and what are measurable production outcomes for fraud reduction or onboarding improvements?
  5. Which chains and L2s are supported natively, and what is the process to integrate new chains?
  6. Provide SOC2 type II, ISO, or third-party audit evidence and recent penetration test results.
  7. What are your SLAs for transaction throughput, incident response, and key compromise scenarios?
  8. How is regulatory compliance built in, specifically AML tooling, on-chain metadata retention, and explainability for AI decisions?
  9. What is the upgrade and migration path for wallet contracts and key-management components?
  10. Provide client references where you implemented a production wallet with live volumes, and share anonymized KPIs.

Use these answers to rank vendors against the architecture and risk appetite of the target business.

Final Verdict: Choosing Antier for Serious Business Impact

For institutional investors and enterprise product owners, architecture and operational proof trump feature lists. Prioritize crypto wallet development companies that can demonstrate production MPC or hardened custody, an ERC-4337 smart account strategy, and measurable AI outcomes for fraud and UX. 

Antier, as positioned in public product material, claims mature AI wallet modules, multi-chain coverage, and enterprise controls; these are the traits investors should seek and verify.

Our experience building and advising regulated web3 projects shows the following pattern. Projects succeed when businesses choose partners who deliver three things: a security-first signing model, programmable accounts for frictionless UX, and an AI stack that is auditable and measurable. Legal and compliance expertise is critical during architecture and vendor selection because custody, AML, and data residency requirements directly influence design choices. We help institutional teams navigate these trade-offs by validating cryptographic proofs, confirming audit evidence, and shaping deployment plans that map to local regulatory regimes. If you are evaluating strategic investments into blockchain wallet development infrastructure, focus your diligence on architecture diagrams, third-party audits, and production AI performance. Those artifacts distinguish long-term infrastructure from short-term launches.

Let’s move from intent to execution. Talk to our experts to understand where and how to begin.

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Frequently Asked Questions

01. Why is 2026 considered a pivotal year for AI-smart crypto wallets?

2026 is pivotal due to advancements in account abstraction, smart account primitives, and the integration of AI for real-time anomaly detection and risk scoring, which enhance user experience and reduce operational risks in cryptocurrency wallet solutions.

02. What are the key technical differentiators investors should consider when evaluating crypto wallet providers?

Investors should focus on hardened cryptography, account abstraction for improved user experience, production-grade AI capabilities, and the ability to integrate with existing KYC, treasury, and audit systems.

03. What does the article provide for investors looking to evaluate crypto wallet development companies?

The article offers a concise technical framework, a shortlist of top vendors, a head-to-head feature comparison, and a rigorous 10-question evaluation guide for assessing crypto wallet development companies.

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Canaccord slashes price target as stock tumbles to multi-year low

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Michael Saylor hints at another bitcoin purchase despite market turmoil

With crypto winter clearly having set in, bulls are now left looking for signs that the bearishness has become so embedded that a bottom might form.

One case in point might be a note from Canaccord’s Joseph Vafi on Wednesday, slashing his price target on Strategy (MSTR) by a whopping 61% to $185 from $474.

Vafi, who lifted his outlook on Strategy as recently as November (to that $474 level), still maintains a buy rating on the stock, and his new $185 target suggests about 40% upside from last night’s close of $133.

Strategy is now down 15% year-to-date, 62% year-over-year, and 72% from its record high in November 2024.

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Bitcoin, said Vafi, is in the midst of an “identity crisis,” still fitting the profile of a long-term store of value but increasingly trading like a risk asset. That tension came into focus during October’s crypto flash crash, when forced liquidations accelerated selling.

Though frequently cast as “digital gold,” bitcoin has failed to keep pace with the recent surge in precious metals, he continued. As gold has climbed on geopolitical tensions and macro uncertainty, bitcoin has lagged, underscoring its ongoing dependence on liquidity and risk appetite rather than safe-haven demand.

Strategy is built to weather volatility, the report said. The company holds more than $44 billion in bitcoin against roughly $8 billion in convertible debt, including a $1 billion tranche puttable in 2027 that remains in the money. Preferred dividends are manageable through modest share issuance, even with MSTR’s market cap no longer commanding much of a premium to the value of its BTC holdings.

Quarterly results are coming this week, but they have become largely immaterial given Strategy’s near-complete dependence on BTC, Vafi continued. A sizable unrealized loss tied to bitcoin’s fourth-quarter selloff is expected.

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Vafi’s new $185 target assumes a 20% rebound in bitcoin prices and a recovery in the company’s mNAV to about 1.25x.

Read more: ETF that feasts on carnage in bitcoin-holder Strategy hits record high

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Bitcoin Price Falls to a New Low

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Bitcoin Price Falls to a New Low

As the BTC/USD chart shows, prices dropped below $74,000 yesterday. This marks the lowest level since November 2024, when the cryptocurrency was rallying on news of Trump’s election victory.

At the same time, sentiment indicators are signalling “extreme fear” across the market. This was reinforced by the break below the key April 2025 low near $74,450.

The media has been circulating increasingly alarming headlines:
→ Michael Burry, well known for his bearish calls, has suggested that a drop below the $70k level could create problems for the largest coin holder, MicroStrategy (MSTR);
→ Matt Hougan, Chief Investment Officer at Bitwise, warns that the market may be heading for a “full-blown” crypto winter rather than a simple correction.

Technical Analysis of the BTC/USD Chart

The price continues to move further away from the support level whose break we highlighted on 30 January.

At the same time, the market appears extremely oversold:
→ the price has fallen below the lower boundary of the previously drawn descending red channel;
→ the RSI indicator is forming bullish divergences.

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Under these conditions, it is reasonable to assume that the market may be setting up for a technical rebound. This scenario looks particularly plausible given the scale of long position liquidations — around $2.5 billion were wiped out on 31 January alone.

If a recovery does unfold, a key test of bullish intent will be the psychological $80k area, where bears previously held clear control while breaking below the lower boundary of the descending channel.

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*Important: At FXOpen UK, Cryptocurrency trading via CFDs is only available to our Professional clients. They are not available for trading by Retail clients. To find out more information about how this may affect you, please get in touch with our team.

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This article represents the opinion of the Companies operating under the FXOpen brand only. It is not to be construed as an offer, solicitation, or recommendation with respect to products and services provided by the Companies operating under the FXOpen brand, nor is it to be considered financial advice.

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Survey Shows Crypto Investors Favor Infrastructure Over DeFi

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Survey Shows Crypto Investors Favor Infrastructure Over DeFi

A survey of senior crypto investors and executives suggests capital priorities are shifting away from decentralized finance (DeFi) and toward core infrastructure, as decision-makers focus on liquidity constraints and market plumbing. 

The findings come from a new report published by the digital asset conference CfC St. Moritz, based on responses from 242 attendees of its invitation-only event in January. Respondents included institutional investors, founders, C-suite executives, regulators and family office representatives. 

According to the survey, 85% of respondents selected infrastructure as their top funding priority, ahead of DeFi, compliance, cybersecurity and user experience. 

While expectations for revenue growth and innovation remain broadly positive, respondents flagged liquidity shortages as the industry’s most pressing risk. The results suggest that investor interest remains, but capital deployment is becoming more selective.

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Respondents on crypto innovation. Source: CfC St. Moritz

Infrastructure takes priority as liquidity concerns persist

Respondents pointed to market depth and settlement capacity as key bottlenecks preventing larger pools of institutional capital from entering crypto markets. 

About 84% of respondents described the macroeconomic backdrop as better than neutral for crypto growth, though many said existing market infrastructure remains insufficient for large-scale capitalization.

The survey also showed a change in innovation expectations. While a majority expects innovation to accelerate in 2026, fewer respondents anticipate a sharp increase compared to last year, suggesting a shift away from more speculative expectations toward execution-focused development.

This shift aligns with broader industry trends, including a focus on custody, clearing, stablecoin infrastructure and tokenization frameworks rather than consumer-facing applications. 

Related: CoreWeave shows how crypto-era infrastructure quietly became AI’s backbone

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US sentiment improves as IPO expectations cool

The survey found a sharp improvement in perceptions of the US regulatory environment, with respondents ranking the country as the second-most favorable jurisdiction for digital assets, behind the United Arab Emirates. 

CfC St. Moritz attributed the shift to stablecoin legislation and clearer rules for banks and regulated market participants. 

At the same time, expectations for crypto initial public offerings cooled after what respondents described as a record year in 2025. While most still expect listings to continue, fewer expressed high confidence, citing valuation resets and liquidity constraints.