Crypto markets have struggled in recent months, with bitcoin falling more than 50% from its late 2025 peak after a sharp sell-off in June driven by persistent outflows from exchange-traded funds (ETFs), high interest rates and lower risk appetite.
Ether (ETH) and most major altcoins have underperformed bitcoin during the downturn, although a handful of sectors, including decentralized finance (DeFi) and tokenization, have shown relative resilience.
As crypto adoption grows across stablecoins, real-world tokenized assets, on-chain lending, and DeFi, the bank argued that usage alone does not determine the value of the token. Rather, long-term winners will convert their activity into sustainable cash flow or sustainable money demand.
Cantor identified Hyperliquid as the clearest example of a fee-based token economy via HYPE buybacks and burns, while Bitcoin remains the benchmark monetary asset and Ethereum the dominant collateral layer for on-chain finance.
Solana, Sui, XRP and Zcash each have differentiated strengths, the report says, but have yet to prove they can translate ecosystem growth into sustainable token demand.
The bank also highlighted that digital asset treasury companies are a neglected investment theme, arguing that the strongest companies are evolving beyond passive crypto holders to become active operators that generate returns, build infrastructure and provide institutional access to digital assets.
He initiated coverage of digital asset treasury companies Forward Industries (FWDI) and Cypherpunk Technologies (CYPH) with overweight ratings and price targets of $7.90 and $0.90, respectively.
