Written by: MaiTong MSX Researcher
Understanding the past cannot be changed, but the future can still be pursued.
2025 has swiftly passed. This year, the global financial market underwent a series of "extreme stress tests": repeated geopolitical tensions, fluctuating macro expectations, a retreat in narratives, and diverging liquidity occurred simultaneously. Meanwhile, tokenization quietly accelerated under the impetus of compliance and infrastructure.
It can be said that from TradFi to Web3, two originally parallel forces are converging at an unprecedented speed, aiming at the on-chain and programmable nature of various financial assets.
To restore the market's "sentiment" into a reference "sample," we used MaiTong MSX as an observation sample and posed nine questions to our internal researchers: from annual keywords, personal gains and losses, and core positions, to the overflow paths of funds, judgments on the ownership of pricing power, and key structural variables that may trigger the "ChatGPT moment" of TradFi × tokenization. This has been organized into a written form for readers.
As a collective review from frontline builders, we hope everyone can gain insight into this year's gains and losses in the eyes of users regarding US stocks / tokenization / Web3. Perhaps this can serve as a reference to discover the hidden sparks behind and yield a survival guide for 2026.
Note: Researcher position disclosure (for sample illustration and research discussion only, not constituting any investment advice)
1. Flashback to 2025: Gains and Regrets in US Stocks / Web3
1. Looking back at 2025, what do you see as the biggest change in the US stock or tokenization field? If you had to summarize it with one keyword, what would it be?
DaiDai: I believe 2025 was a turning point for the US stock market, shifting from "narrative-driven" to "substantial implementation," and the keyword to summarize it would be "value return."
Especially regarding AI's "capital expenditure" (CapEx) realization, it can be said that the entire year was under performance scrutiny. The market clearly no longer buys into mere "AI stories" but is extremely focused on whether the capital expenditures of tech giants can translate into actual revenue.
LittleFox: My keyword is "regulatory-driven technology application."
The biggest change in 2025 was the trend of integration between traditional finance and Web3, which is intuitively reflected in the increase in the number of stablecoins and daily applications. It was very evident that in 2025, trading funds in the crypto market experienced outflows, and the overall market showed a downward trend, failing to maintain a bull market state. However, crypto technology has begun to become part of the infrastructure in traditional finance. The market logic is ever-changing, but from a normal distribution trend, traditional finance, especially the US stock market, will receive more technological support from the crypto market, thus gaining more user growth globally.
Echo: If I had to give a keyword, I think it would be "playability."
From my perspective and that of my friends who are seasoned in crypto and new to US stocks, everyone's excitement has shifted from "lowering the threshold for investing in US stocks" to "how to play with tokenized US stocks on-chain." This is because this track has enough playability, allowing people to move beyond mere narratives.
Value no longer solely depends on how exciting the future of the story is; it also depends on how fun the tool is, how it can be played, and whether it can combine the advantages of both to create a higher ceiling. Dual players in stocks and crypto should find it enjoyable, as something reliable like Apple stock has transformed into "financial Lego" on-chain: it can be held, staked, earn interest, and even switch between various states as a leveraged base, being packaged into derivatives, with states being additive.
Frank: If I had to summarize the tokenization track of US stocks in 2025 with one keyword, I would choose "acceleration."
This "acceleration" does not come from a single event but is reflected in the synchronized advancement of a whole set of infrastructure and institutional levels, including the forward discussion of compliance and a clear shift in attitudes towards the topic of "on-chain." Whether it is Nasdaq moving from a bystander to personally entering the field or the proposal of the 5×23 hour trading experiment, it marks that these Wall Street players are no longer just dipping their toes in the water but are starting to dismantle the fences of the old world (see further reading: "Nasdaq Hits the Gas: From 'Dipping Toes' to 'Feasting,' Is US Stock Tokenization Entering a Decisive Stage?" and "US Stocks Sprinting Towards 'Never Closing': Why Did Nasdaq Launch the '5×23 Hour' Trading Experiment?").
In contrast, my overall impression of the US stock market in 2025 is "turbulent." After all, this year was not peaceful, with events like the April squat and the impacts of tariffs/geopolitical turmoil. However, what is astonishing is its strong resilience and sector rotation efficiency. From AI, chips to electricity, copper, storage, nuclear energy, and infrastructure, almost every stage had a new narrative taking over.
It can be said that 2025 further widened the cognitive gap between US stocks and Crypto. In my view, US stocks resemble a deep sea, while Crypto remains a series of fragmented small ponds. More importantly, US stocks have real profits and cash flow backing them, which allows the valuation logic to be repeatedly verified—something that almost 99% of Altcoins cannot compare to.
Keaton: The keyword I choose is "second half."
From my perspective, blockchain has finally entered the second half, moving towards compliance and maturity, returning to its intended use, competing with the previous generation of opaque settlement systems in traditional finance through superior clearing and settlement efficiency.
User scale and product experience have finally reached the eve of a singularity, capable of supporting some mass adoption-level use cases.
L: Looking back at 2025, if I had to summarize the biggest change in the US stock and tokenized asset field with one keyword, I would choose "implementation."
In simple terms, "tokenized trading has truly been established" in 2025, because from STO to tokenization, the past few years have mostly remained at the conceptual level, while 2025 began to focus on liquidity, trading depth, and real use cases.
Users are no longer just concerned about "whether assets are on-chain," but rather "whether they are easy to trade and worth long-term participation."
Ariaina: Reflecting on 2025, I believe the emergence of US stock tokenization is an important signal that on-chain assets are beginning to undergo structural changes.
The concept is not new; in earlier cycles, the market attempted to put various types of real assets like US Treasury bonds and real estate on-chain. These explorations had their rationality at each stage, but overall, they were more of a supplement to the types of on-chain assets and did not truly enter the mainstream view or change the core structure of on-chain assets.
Against the backdrop of a pressured global economy and tightening liquidity, the Web3 market itself has found it increasingly difficult to rely solely on crypto-native assets for new growth. However, US stocks, as the most mature, liquid, and easily understood assets globally, have not only opened up an asset space far greater than their own scale for Web3 but have also established a more direct connection between traditional finance and Web3.
From the perspective of ordinary users, this is a more natural path—users do not need to first understand complex crypto concepts but can start from familiar assets and gradually enter the on-chain system.
Therefore, if I had to summarize this change with one word, I would choose "open"—not opening a specific product or entry, but opening the ceiling of on-chain assets and the long-isolated boundary between Web3 and mainstream finance.
2. What was your most comfortable investment operation in 2025, and what was your biggest regret in missing out or losing? (Not limited to US stocks / crypto)
DaiDai: This year, I indeed hit most of the popular stocks, such as OKLO, RKLB, IREN, NBIS, ASTS, SNDK, MU, OPEN, etc. Yes! I love to follow trends, especially popular stocks.
At the same time, in precious metals, I also benefited from gold and silver, and I cleared ETH at over 4000+ (looking back, it was another form of "successfully escaping the peak"). My biggest regret is not buying back MU and SNDK during the pullback in October-November.
LittleFox: In my personal trading, I adhere to the principle of "avoiding disasters by following the trend, while only by going against it can one achieve true success," focusing on left-side high-frequency intraday trading. However, I often combine macro data, company data, and other fundamental information with rhythm to find entry opportunities.
The most comfortable trade this year was in November when the market experienced a broad decline due to fundamental pressures. I predicted that after Nvidia's earnings report was released, it would undoubtedly lift the market with its stabilizing power because Nvidia's sales situation had basically completed all sales tasks at the beginning of the year. I couldn't think of any reason for an unexpected earnings report, so I increased leverage to buy at a relatively good price (voiceover: looking back, increasing leverage at that time had a gambling element because if Nvidia's earnings report had an unexpected outcome, it would lead to significant losses; I do not encourage such behavior). This operation was an opportunity for cognitive realization; besides earning some profits, the greater achievement was the sense of accomplishment from realizing my cognitive understanding, so it remains memorable.
As for the regret of missing out, it is that I basically did not touch the precious metals market until it reached what I considered an absurd price. I only began to conduct in-depth analysis of precious metals at that point, but by then, there were no suitable entry points in my trading system, and I could only watch from afar. This is regrettable because when precious metals show unusual movements, one should pay attention to conduct in-depth analysis.
Echo: The most comfortable was the dollar-cost averaging and profit-taking on BTC, SOL, and BNB.
The biggest regret was the emotional chasing of TRUMP and CFX, allowing losses to accumulate. I didn't participate in any other meme projects later in the year, feeling completely devoid of intuition in emotional investing; as for US stocks, I threw some New Year's money into MSTR at the beginning of the year, but did not see particularly large gains.
Taking profits is the greatest respect for trading; let's encourage each other.
Frank: To be frank, I did not make many active investments in the crypto field in 2025.
On the contrary, due to work influences, several operations I made in US stocks turned out to be unexpected joys this year, including phase allocations to Google (GOOGL) and Xpeng Motors (XPEV), both of which yielded relatively good returns and made me vaguely aware that this might be a turning point in my personal investment path.
In the past period, I was more accustomed to seeking opportunities on-chain, between different protocols, and between on-chain and CEX/platforms, mainly focusing on stablecoin arbitrage. Therefore, I held USDT/USDC for a long time, which allowed me to obtain relatively stable "snack-level" returns. However, since deeply engaging in US stock research in the second half of 2025, I realized a problem, which I just discussed with a friend today:
My background as a Web3 Native (self-proclaimed) makes my current investment logic somewhat "amorphous"—not fully based on a systematic value investment framework established in the mature US stock market, yet gradually becoming unaccustomed to the highly emotional, purely speculative nature of the Crypto world.
This is precisely why I have always maintained a cautious attitude towards some high-explosive meme or purely narrative projects, and I increasingly agree with a subjective conclusion: individuals with a background in US stock investments find it much easier to transition to crypto than pure crypto players do when entering US stocks.
As for regrets, there are none. Although GPS (GoPlus) has been deeply trapped and I have continuously added to my position, it is based on my trust in the project team and observations of the C-end security logic, so it cannot be considered a misstep. If the market is willing to take the risk, I am willing to endure it.
L: If I had to choose, the most comfortable operation for me in 2025 actually has a common point: I did not deliberately try to be "smarter," but instead chose to stand on the side of certainty.
In the US stock market, I participated more in the AI infrastructure and energy sectors, such as VST and CEG. They are not the most popular names every day, but the logic is very clear—AI ultimately needs to land and cannot be separated from electricity and infrastructure. I do not chase highs, nor do I operate frequently; I dare to hold during pullbacks, and the holding process feels very solid.
In crypto, I also continued with a spot, long-term style. Compared to chasing new narratives, I prefer to hold BTC and a small amount of assets with clear infrastructure attributes for the long term. These positions do not require constant monitoring but allow me to stay at the table and follow the overall industry trend.
The most regrettable aspect is also quite consistent. Whether in the commercial aerospace sector in US stocks (ASTS, RKLB) or the periodically explosive AI + crypto and restaking directions in crypto, I understood the logic but chose a more conservative pace in execution, missing out on the steepest part.
However, looking back, I do not completely regret it. One thing that 2025 has made me more certain of is that some market movements are meant to "prove the market's resilience," while some positions are meant to accompany you for the long haul. I prefer to dedicate my energy to the latter.
Ariaina: If I were to say what my most "comfortable" investment operation in 2025 was, it was actually quite boring—continuing to hold BTC for the long term. As an old BTC dollar-cost averaging player, this year was basically about mechanically increasing my position: buying when it rises, buying when it falls, primarily focusing on "I don't know what the market wants to do, but I don't want to guess." Not smart, but I slept well.
In addition to BTC, I also allocated a small position in BNB this year. Platform tokens have not had a good reputation in recent years, and everyone says they have no long-term value. My mindset when I bought it was quite subtle: on one hand, I didn't really believe it, but on the other hand, I couldn't help but want to try. As a result, BSC was driven by Alpha Meme this year, creating a wave of application scenarios, which provided a bit of logical comfort for someone like me who was half-convinced.
If I had to mention the most regrettable operation, it would definitely be TRX. In my youthful ignorance, after not using Tron, I almost gave away the remaining TRX I had as "electronic waste" to a friend. Who would have thought that Sun would really manage to get TRON onto Nasdaq? The biggest lesson for me from this was not missing out on money, but realizing that you may look down on a project, but never underestimate a founder who can keep tinkering and always survive.
Additionally, 2025 was also the year I resumed trading contracts after two years. The strategy was quite straightforward: "medium to long-term, only play in a bull market." From the perspective of order win rates, the results were not bad, but the problem lay with me—despite being a strategy trader, I ultimately let emotions take over my account. During the drop in September, rationality went offline, and panic took over, leading to my failure to avoid it in time. The system didn't break; I just collapsed first.
Looking back at this year, whether I made money or not is no longer the most important thing. The more genuine feeling is that the market changes every year, but I still have to retake the exam in emotional management every year. To add a note about US stock investments, as a complete novice, this year I accidentally boarded the AI express train by following "MaiMai's Selection." Honestly, I used to look down on traditional financial markets, thinking they were slow and lacked imagination. But when the market moved, I could only exclaim: wow, this is really good! I am still in the learning phase, focusing on surviving first, then discussing style and returns.
Finally, if I learned anything from the US stock market in 2025, it might not be specific techniques, but rather a change in mindset: from "looking down," to "acknowledging the gap," and then to "willing to learn slowly." I hope that by 2026, I can not only shout "this is great" in US stock investments but also truly start to sense the flavor.
3. As of December 31, 2025, what are your core positions, and can you share your reasons for being optimistic about them? (Not limited to US stocks / crypto)
DaiDai: My long-term positions include TSLA, GOOGL, PLTR, HOOD, and AMZN, while my short-term positions include RKLB, TSLA, ONDS, ALAB, INTC, WDC, and TSM.
The logic for short-term and long-term positions is quite different.
For short-term positions like RKLB, ONDS, and TSLA, I roll them over to snowball. After playing familiar stocks for a long time, I develop a so-called "market feel," making it easier to grasp the rhythm. INTC, WDC, ALAB, and TSM are companies and sectors I am optimistic about, but since I haven't clearly established long-term positions yet and the costs are not particularly low, they remain short-term for now, though they may evolve into long-term positions.
In my long-term positions, besides being optimistic about the company's prospects for TSLA and PLTR, the main reason is still the low cost. Talking about it without considering cost is just playing tricks; I am optimistic about GOOGL and have been adding to my position on dips. There was a saying this year: "Hiding in GOOGL during a bear market." I have always believed AMZN is an undervalued stock, with AWS having actual performance support. Let's see if its value will be realized. HOOD has really done a great job with its products, and from the end of 2024 to 2025, it caught a wave of crypto enthusiasm. In 2026, I will mainly look at whether HOOD's new social segment will bring an explosion.
LittleFox: Since I do intraday trading, I will talk about the targets I usually work with. First is AAPL, which is an extremely high-quality target, no doubt about it, and very worthy of long-term holding. In my personal understanding, after Apple abandoned its automotive business, its strategic development positioning became clearer. However, I do intraday trading, so I do not hold AAPL stock (previously sold my shares following Buffett). Additionally, with local information and market changes, I sometimes short AAPL. For example, during last year's iPhone 17 launch event, I shorted it and made a very comfortable profit. Similarly, ONDS and TSLA are also targets I frequently trade in waves; their market movements are very interesting. Although I mainly do intraday trading, I rely heavily on the fundamental environment, and grasping the rhythm of fundamentals gives me confidence in my trades.
As for the crypto industry, besides the BTC I bought a long time ago, I am only very much looking forward to MSX.
Echo: Starting in the second half of 2025, I began trading US stocks and gradually built up my positions in the "seven sisters," which serve as my base, moving with the market. My large position is in TSLA; I am not betting on the cars but on the cards Musk holds—energy, AI, and robotics. Additionally, I have a bit of MSTR and CRCL, which serve as my "anchor" for crypto sentiment in the traditional market, left untouched.
In crypto, I still have the same three: BTC, ETH, and SOL. These have been my old friends that I bring home for the New Year; companionship is the longest confession of love.
Frank: In terms of US stocks, my core positions are currently very concentrated: Google (GOOGL) and Coinbase (COIN).
GOOGL is a position I gradually built after systematically studying US stocks and understanding the logic of tokenization and AI infrastructure over the past three months, with an average cost of around $250. Among the "seven sisters" of US stocks, whether in the early internet era or the upcoming AI potential, I have always preferred companies like Google that combine technical depth with commercialization capability. COIN, on the other hand, was a target I bought when I first opened my Interactive Brokers account. Despite experiencing deep losses and gains during that time, I have not sold it; its symbolic significance outweighs its actual significance.
With my recent continued study in US stock research, I have also started to pay attention to RKLB and some storage/infrastructure-related sectors, but overall, I am still in the observation and small position trial phase.
In terms of crypto, my core positions remain very restrained. GPS (GoPlus) is more based on long-term observations in the security sector. USDT/USDC still occupies a considerable proportion, mainly serving stablecoin arbitrage and liquidity mobility needs.
Ariaina: In crypto, I firmly choose to invest in BTC for the long term, with no particular reason. For me, choosing BTC does not require a complex logic; Bitcoin is the only consensus asset in the crypto world that has stood the test of time, and it is the minimum prerequisite for me to stay in this field. At this stage, I prefer to use BTC to represent my long-term judgment on crypto rather than expend energy in the high volatility and constantly changing narratives.
In the US stock market, I am still a novice who is learning. The overall investment is not large, but within my limited positions, I have chosen to heavily invest in GOOGL. From a business perspective, Google's core advantages are very clear: search and browser form a long-term stable traffic entry, and the Google ecosystem has a very high penetration rate in work and collaboration scenarios, becoming one of the infrastructures of daily life and work. In terms of AI, I value the long-term potential behind Gemini. Compared to pure model capabilities, Google has real and continuously generated data, a mature product system, and the ability to quickly implement AI in high-frequency scenarios. At this stage, GOOGL is more like my core target for building cognition and observing long-term changes in the US stock market, rather than a short-term speculative object.
To add a small observation, looking back at the performance of the seven sisters in the US stock market in 2025, Google's maximum drawdown was about 24%, with a rise of about 76%. It may not be the fastest-growing or the hottest story, but it certainly took the least beating when the market turned. In a sense, GOOGL is more like a "not so exciting, but allows for a good night's sleep" core position, which aligns well with my current risk preference.
2026 will likely be a year full of excitement, with events like FIFA and the US midterm elections… these short-term hot events will create some short-term trading opportunities. I will choose to participate in related sectors for short-term trading during a few exciting times, with the main goal being to avoid losses, and secondly to make money—if I can leave gracefully before the excitement disperses, that would already be an improvement.
2. The Intersection of US Stocks and Crypto: Where Does the Money Come From and Where Does It Overflow?
4. If the Federal Reserve enters the mid to late stage of interest rate cuts, do you think global liquidity will first overflow into US stocks or push up BTC and alt assets? Will the correlation between US stocks and crypto rise or fall in 2026?
DaiDai: First, liquidity is a "overflow" logic, not a binary choice. By the mid to late stage of interest rate cuts, US stock valuations are usually already pushed up, and large funds find them too expensive to invest in. At this point, the extra hot money will naturally overflow into BTC and altcoins. Simply put, US stocks eat first, and the leftover soup and meat will flow into the crypto market.
Second, the correlation will definitely decrease. In the past, the crypto market was the "little follower" of US stocks, with everyone watching macro conditions and moving together. By 2026, it is likely that US stocks will be busy looking at company performance and returns, while the crypto market will have its own independent market, potentially leading to a situation where US stocks are stagnant while the crypto market is thriving.
If we consider US stock tokenization, that would be a different scenario.
LittleFox: I believe that the current global liquidity is in a very strange state. Specifically, there is significant uncertainty in the global settlement system, so under Japan's interest rate hikes, liquidity has not decreased, and precious metals have surged under low inflation.
In this context, I think that as the Federal Reserve enters the mid to late stage of interest rate cuts, meaning a rhythm of one rate cut per year over the next two years, the overall market liquidity will undergo structural deviations. It will first flow towards assets with good cash flow that can sustain themselves. In the US stock market, companies with good cash flow will receive more liquidity inflow, while in the crypto market, assets that can generate cash income will also be favored. The uncertainty in the global settlement system will lead most investment assets to focus not on how to appreciate but on how to preserve value.
Echo: Water may first fill the largest lake (US stocks) and then overflow into the most solid backup reservoir (BTC), ultimately only irrigating those new ponds (selected alts) that have self-water retention capabilities (cash flow) or are in critical waterways (infrastructure), rather than flooding the entire plain.
In 2026, the correlation between US stocks and crypto will "structurally decline." Sometimes they may rise and fall together due to the same big news in the short term, but in the long run, the fundamental reasons for their price increases are diverging: the core pricing of US stocks will return to "corporate earnings," driven more by "fundamentals"; the core pricing of crypto will shift towards "on-chain utility" and "protocol cash flow," driven more by "utility."
This separation is actually a good thing for investors, as it means that real diversification opportunities are emerging.
Frank: If the Federal Reserve's rate-cutting cycle enters the mid to late stage in 2026, I tend to believe that global liquidity will first overflow into US stocks, especially growth stocks supported by both performance and narrative, rather than directly pushing up alt assets.
BTC may still be an important emotional amplifier, but the widespread diffusion of altcoins requires not just liquidity easing but also new narrative carriers and structural demand.
In this context, I judge that the correlation between US stocks and crypto is likely to decrease in 2026. This is not because the two are completely decoupling, but because US stocks are moving towards a more institutionalized and predictable pricing system, while the internal differentiation within crypto will further intensify.
Ariaina: If the Federal Reserve enters the mid to late stage of interest rate cuts, liquidity will likely first go to work in US stocks before overflowing into BTC and alts, rather than the other way around.
For retail investors, it is very realistic: wherever the market is stable, with small drawdowns and high return ratios, money will go there first—2025 has already demonstrated this in advance. For institutions, the stock market is the main battlefield for accumulating positions, leveraging, and controlling risks, while crypto assets are often the next stop after risk appetite has been fully ignited. When faced with moments of conflict, such as wars or trade frictions, the first reaction of funds is still gold and oil, rather than the narrative of hedging with BTC.
Therefore, by 2026, US stocks and crypto are more likely to be lifted by liquidity together first, and then each will follow its own cycle, rather than holding hands all the time.
5. Besides the chip ecosystem represented by Nvidia, which US stock sectors also possess high volatility, high growth, and strong narratives? What indicators or signals do you typically use to identify potential structural bull markets?
DaiDai: Personally, I see two options.
One is the space sector, which has an extremely high beta. Whenever SpaceX makes a big news announcement, the small stocks in the sector (like RKLB, ASTS, etc.) can surge by 20% in a day. I usually look at deliveries, such as launch situations and milestone achievements; or I look at large orders: for example, RKLB's orders from NASA lead to a surge, and I watch the premium compared to SpaceX and SpaceX's news—such as the potential explosion of the space sector driven by SpaceX's expected IPO.
The other is nuclear energy and power infrastructure, where the narrative logic is also very straightforward. AI data centers require a lot of electricity; at the very least, chips need to be plugged in, and the current power grid simply cannot handle it. Under this logic, uranium mines and SMRs (small modular reactors) are necessities; their attributes are a typical double hit of cyclical and growth. Once a tech giant (like Microsoft or Amazon) announces the purchase of a nuclear power plant, this sector will skyrocket.
Additionally, from a technical perspective, one can pay attention to large orders in the dark market, as well as sudden orders and expiring options (unusual whales), which may impact stock prices.
LittleFox: First, the timing of entry must be based on the emotional consensus provided by the fundamental environment to judge the basis for bullish or bearish positions. The timing of entry will pay more attention to the K-line patterns of the market, such as the "W" bottom and "M" top of the larger cycle. If the opportunity in the larger cycle is missed, then consider the patterns in the smaller cycles. From the perspective of fractal theory, similar patterns across different cycles still have replicability, and as long as historical market movements have been validated as effective, operations can be executed.
Echo: It’s really about finding the next "must-buy" big story. From my experience (which may not be reliable), the best opportunities are hidden in places where "the story is incredibly reasonable, but most people haven't yet calculated how much it can earn."
Biotechnology, defense aerospace, and energy—leading companies in these mainstream sectors may have large orders that serve as the most tangible indicators.
Frank: Besides the chip ecosystem represented by Nvidia, I personally pay more attention to those with high volatility (indicating that funds are willing to participate repeatedly), where the narrative and reality can form a closed loop (constantly validated by financial reports or events). However, I am still building my specific methodology, so I won't embarrass myself by sharing it just yet.
6. With the increase in trading volume of tokenized US stocks, do you think the pricing power of tokenized assets is more likely to be held by Nasdaq or shift to on-chain DEX platforms?
DaiDai: The main pricing power is definitely still with Nasdaq, but DEX will take away the "around-the-clock" premium power. Nasdaq's biggest weakness is that it has to close (on weekends, holidays, and after hours), at which point DEX becomes the only casino. Of course, future 5×23h or 7×24h trading may bring different situations, but we will need time to see.
LittleFox: It must be with Nasdaq; DEX merely adds channels for stock circulation but cannot determine the liquidity of the stock market itself. The overall volume of stablecoins in the global market is still a drop in the bucket compared to traditional funds. If such a volume of funds were to influence the pricing power of stock assets, it would be wishful thinking. However, for some small-cap targets, there may be new play styles that the market is very much looking forward to.
Echo: Nasdaq, as a regulated "birthplace," will maintain its nominal pricing position in the long term, and people will still look at its prices as a benchmark. However, it will gradually become a place that primarily provides around-the-clock reference prices.
The real pricing actions will shift to on-chain DEX. This is where prices are discovered, volatility is created, and various arbitrage opportunities arise first. Because it is faster, more global, and allows for unlimited combinations of trading strategies, the smartest money and the latest play styles will flock here, naturally gradually gaining actual pricing power.
Frank: If Nasdaq officially implements tokenized US stocks, the pricing power will initially still reside with Nasdaq. After all, the foundation of rules, compliance, and liquidity depth lies in TradFi, but on-chain DEX platforms will hold off-exchange pricing power (such as 7×24 hour price games), and this power will ultimately force Nasdaq to change its trading mechanisms.
L: I lean towards the result of "layered pricing": in the short term, the core pricing power still lies with Nasdaq and other major exchanges, as the deepest liquidity, information disclosure, and clearing systems are still concentrated there; but as tokenized trading grows, on-chain DEX will gradually gain marginal pricing power, mainly reflected in non-trading hours, long-tail targets, as well as derivatives and leveraged trading scenarios.
Ultimately, it is not a replacement relationship but a division of labor: traditional exchanges are responsible for primary anchor pricing, while on-chain markets are responsible for supplementary price discovery and global 24/7 liquidity.
Ariaina: In my view, the pricing power is more likely to be held by the party that "pays the highest price for price errors," rather than the one that appears more authoritative or is formally more decentralized.
In the Nasdaq system, market makers, brokers, clearing institutions, and regulators form a tightly bound system of interests and responsibilities: price errors, liquidity distortions, and abnormal volatility will directly translate into real financial losses, compliance risks, and even legal liabilities. This high cost of error environment naturally forces prices to be continuously corrected to the closest position of true supply and demand.
In contrast, DEX relies more on liquidity depth and spontaneous corrections by arbitrageurs. Once liquidity is insufficient or market makers go down, the price deviation directly punishes not the wrongdoer but the entire market, and this cost is undoubtedly huge (refer to the 10.11 incident). Therefore, as long as tokenized US stocks are still anchored to real-world assets and have not formed sufficiently deep on-chain institutional liquidity, traditional markets like Nasdaq are clearly the ones with the greatest responsibility and highest costs.
Of course, if enough top market makers and executable responsibility and punishment mechanisms emerge on-chain in the future, then pricing power may truly shift; otherwise, on-chain will be more of a trading location rather than a price arbiter.
Three, Looking Ahead to 2026: The Investment K-Line of "Crypto People in US Stocks"
7. In 2026, what core US stock sectors do you see as most promising and are willing to hold long-term? Why?
DaiDai: Mainly two sectors—energy and power grid infrastructure, storage, and space.
First, energy and power grids. I even feel that buying power grids is more solid than buying chips. In 2025, everyone was scrambling for computing power, but by 2026, the bottleneck will be entirely on electricity. Even if we have the best H100/H200, if the power grid cannot accommodate it, it is useless. The shortage of transformers in the US and the aging power grid are debts that must be repaid in terms of infrastructure. So, the logic is to "sell shovels": whether it is nuclear energy (SMR) or the renovation of old power grids, this is where tech giants must invest money to make AI run. This is a necessity among necessities, with almost no uncertainty.
Secondly, storage, because after AI scales up, data storage becomes a necessity. The usage is growing rapidly, and demand is expanding quickly. Computing power (GPU) is responsible for production, while storage (NAND/HDD) is responsible for storage. The current situation is that high-end HBM is hard to come by, and the production capacity of large-capacity enterprise hard drives cannot keep up. This is not just a simple price increase; it has transformed from a cyclical product into a necessary infrastructure.
As for space, SpaceX is expected to go public in 2026—what else is there to say?
LittleFox: In 2026, if I could only choose one core US stock sector to hold long-term, I would be most optimistic about: AI infrastructure, including the entire chain of computing power + data centers, because of the certainty of spending growth, supply constraints, and the characteristics of layered layout in the industry chain, and 2026 is likely still in the mid-cycle of capital expenditure growth.
Echo: Energy, the "shovel seller" of the AI era. It may not be sexy, but the demand is solid, and the business is long-term. Rather than getting tangled up in which AI model company to invest in, it is better to directly bet on the energy that all AI companies cannot do without.
Frank: In terms of US stock investments, I am still learning, but currently, I am most optimistic about commercialized AI applications and computing power infrastructure. This is not a hype concept, but because real cash flow is shifting in this field.
Ariaina: As a novice in US stocks, I can't claim to have a deep cognitive advantage in any particular sector. Rather than forcing a logic, I would personally start with assets like the "Seven Sisters" that have been repeatedly validated by the market, serving as my "beginner's safe zone." For me, this isn't about betting on which sector will definitely outperform, but rather about establishing a foundational understanding, so I prefer to prioritize "surviving long and seeing clearly" over "selecting accurately."
8. If a true "ChatGPT moment" occurs in 2026 with TradFi × tokenized US stocks, which variable do you think is most likely to trigger it? (For example, the normalization of 24/7 US stock trading, the formal inclusion of stablecoin legislation, or the marginalization of traditional clearinghouses, etc.)
DaiDai: I have actually thought about this question. A true "ChatGPT moment" should be the instant when the public suddenly realizes that "there's no turning back," which could be triggered by "Asset as Currency" seamless payments.
For example, when paying for coffee at Starbucks or making a deposit on the Tesla website, you wouldn't need to sell stocks to convert to USDT or dollars; instead, you would directly swipe your tokenized shares of TSLA in your account.
The moment you can spend your TSLA like cash, that will be the "ChatGPT moment" of TradFi × tokenization. Before that, all the 24/7 trading is just a different place to trade stocks.
LittleFox: I believe that to witness the most significant "ChatGPT moment," the key is for compliant stablecoins to be clearly integrated into the financial system, used at scale by banks and large financial institutions, and achieving atomic-level settlement with tokenized securities, thereby upgrading the on-chain issuance channel to become the on-chain clearing layer. Nothing else is as important as this.
Echo: DTCC "officially enters the game," allowing financial institutions to provide instant buying and selling and settlement of US stock tokens directly on the public chain.
Frank: If a "ChatGPT moment" truly occurs, I believe the most likely triggering variable is not price, but rather the system, especially the full normalization of 24/7 US stock trading. This would completely activate global liquidity, and various possibilities surrounding downstream trading would enter a free kingdom. I think we could see a resurgence of the trading and product innovation wave similar to the DeFi Summer of 2020.
Keaton: There need to be 1-2 on-chain brokerage products that can achieve a user experience and security guarantee on par with WeChat and Alipay.
Ariaina: I believe the real "ChatGPT moment" is not about where you can trade or how long you can trade, but rather that funds finally dare to go all-in. Just like DeFi doesn't lack protocols, it lacks answers about who is responsible when things go wrong. Efficiency determines usability, and regulation determines whether one dares to use it; the real turning point will definitely occur at the moment of "daring to use."
9. Give a self-defense advice to "crypto people in US stocks": In the face of increasingly converging volatility between the two asset classes, what is your hedging strategy? How much cash percentage will you reserve to cope with potential black swans?
DaiDai: Diversify by allocating to US stocks (large-cap stocks with significant positions, small-cap stocks with smaller positions), crypto (currently only trusting BTC and ETH), and precious metals. Keep 20% in cash to hedge against risks. At the same time, establish your own profit-taking and stop-loss logic, continuously optimizing this logic to improve your trading win rate.
LittleFox: When I trade, I only use 1/10 of my funds. Even if I fully leverage to 10 times, it is still just a full position of my total funds. If I need to hold overnight positions, this strategy will focus on long positions. During the previous "1011 incident," my long positions executed overnight, but I did not face liquidation due to the huge volatility, even feeling indifferent because there was no forced liquidation price, and I eventually left with profits.
Here, I want to refute the premise of this question: the crypto market, due to a lack of liquidity, can no longer fully align with US stocks. If you want to invest well, it is best to place most of your funds in the US stock market.
Echo: Use the quality of US stocks to hedge against the intensity of the crypto market. More positions will be allocated to US stock assets that can generate stable cash flow and have a valuation floor, likely including the Seven Sisters; at the same time, strictly limit the leverage and proportion of crypto positions, using the profits from the excess volatility to periodically supplement US stock positions.
Frank: Personally, in 2026, I would allocate about 80% of my movable investment funds within the US stock system.
This is not because I am pessimistic about crypto, but because I think everyone can easily live in their own path dependency. Those who experienced the DeFi Summer often hold an irrational expectation for another boom on-chain.
For me, it is more important to maintain sufficient cash/stablecoins and control trading frequency, rather than chasing every opportunity. Ultimately, it is about accepting that you do not need to win in every market simultaneously.
Keaton: Don't short large-cap stocks, maintain healthy leverage.
Ariaina: True hedging is not about skill, but rather about low-leverage small positions, ample cash flow, and the discipline to not let emotions dictate your trades. The market is uncontrollable, but emotions are controllable. Once you let emotions leverage, what explodes is never the position, but the cognition.
免责声明：本文章仅代表作者个人观点，不代表本平台的立场和观点。本文章仅供信息分享，不构成对任何人的任何投资建议。用户与作者之间的任何争议，与本平台无关。如网页中刊载的文章或图片涉及侵权，请提供相关的权利证明和身份证明发送邮件到support@aicoin.com，本平台相关工作人员将会进行核查。
