Bankless Founder Predicts Wall Street’s On-Chain Shift and ICO Revival

Bankless founder David Hoffman has laid out a bold roadmap for crypto in 2026. He argues that Wall Street’s shift to on-chain, the return of ICOs and deeper DeFi integration will reshape the industry’s next cycle. His predictions land as regulators soften their stance and institutions move from testing to execution. Rather than hype-driven forecasts, Hoffman framed his outlook around infrastructure, regulation and incentives already forming across crypto and traditional finance.

Tokenization Moves From Pilot to Wall Street Default

Hoffman believes 2026 will mark the point where tokenization becomes standard, not experimental. He pointed to recent comments from BlackRock CEO Larry Fink and regulators signaling that capital markets will increasingly live on-chain. Large asset managers already operate tokenized funds. That momentum is shifting toward equities, credit and structured products.

Bankless founder argues Wall Street now has the regulatory clarity it previously lacked. As a result, institutions no longer ask if assets go on-chain, but how fast. He also raised open questions. Will platforms like Securitize and Superstate dominate issuance? Or will banks prefer to issue and control tokens themselves? Either way, Hoffman expects tokenized assets to become a core market, not a side product.

ICOs Re-Emerge as Regulation Loosens

Hoffman predicts ICOs will return after years of regulatory freeze. He described yield farming, points programs and airdrop games as inefficient substitutes for direct capital formation. According to the Bankless founder, the difference now is legal groundwork. He highlighted Aztec Network’s recent on-chain token sale, which included a legal opinion classifying its token as non-security. The sale ran fully on-chain through Uniswap’s CCA framework, without intermediaries. That model, he argued, restores the original promise of ICOs: direct access between builders and the public. However, David Hoffman warned that quality matters. Poor projects could still poison the model if standards slip.

Stablecoin Banks and DeFi Merge Faster Than Expected

Hoffman also expects rapid growth in stablecoin-based “new banks” that use Ethereum as their backend. He cited Coinbase’s integration of DeFi products as proof that users can access lending and trading without knowing they’re using DeFi. He believes these fintech-style apps will expand into full financial super-apps. Unlike traditional banks, stablecoin platforms can reward users with tokens at near-zero cost, turning customers into stakeholders. As UX improves and blockchains disappear from the surface, Hoffman sees DeFi becoming invisible but essential.

Robotics Hype Rises as Quantum Risks Enter the Conversation

On the speculative side, Bankless founder warned that robotics-related tokens could see hype-driven rallies, similar to past AI token manias. He stressed that real robotics value remains concentrated in private companies and large incumbents, not small-cap tokens.

Finally, he flagged quantum computing as a slow but serious threat. While not imminent, Hoffman expects quantum security risks to enter mainstream crypto discussions in 2026, especially around dormant Bitcoin wallets and cryptographic standards. In short, David Hoffman’s message was clear. The next cycle is less about memes and more about plumbing. Crypto’s future, he argued, will be built quietly before it explodes loudly.