Sharplink CEO Joseph Chalom outlined optimistic predictions for the future of Ethereum (ETH), highlighting that the total value locked (TVL) in the network will increase significantly next year.
Stablecoin expansion and institutional investor interest
According to report According to information from CoinMarketCap, Chalom expects the stablecoin market to soar to $500 billion by December 2026. Currently, the market capitalization of stablecoins is approximately $308.46 billion, implying 62% growth from current numbers.
Given that Ethereum is responsible for processing more than half of all stablecoin transactions across various blockchain networks, the expected expansion in stablecoin issuance and transaction volume is expected to significantly increase the network’s TVL.
Chalom further predicts that the tokenized market will: real world assets (RWA) has also experienced significant growth and could reach a total of $300 billion next year.
This goes beyond the tokenization of individual securities or funds to encompass complete fund complexes, which is expected to increase the relevance of Ethereum in the financial ecosystem.
Key to this expected growth is the increased involvement of large financial institutions. traditional finance BlackRock and others have increased their interest in blockchain technology over the past year. Chalom predicts that this could act as a catalyst to move significant assets to Ethereum’s infrastructure.
Can Ethereum overcome the price challenge?
An increase in the total value locked usually indicates an increase in network usage, which increases market sentiment and can influence Ethereum price trends. Currently the data shows that TVL of ETH Approximately $68.2 billion.
Cryptocurrency analyst Benjamin Cowen recently expressed skepticism that Ethereum will reach a new price high in 2026, especially considering the market conditions for Bitcoin (BTC).
However, Chalom predicts that sovereign wealth fund holdings and efforts to tokenize Ethereum could grow five to ten times over the next year.
This potential increase is due to and may be driven by competitive pressures. institutional investorsCompanies that have been reluctant to expose themselves to cryptocurrencies will need to rethink their strategies as adoption by their peers accelerates.
Additionally, Chalom believes that the integration of on-chain artificial intelligence (AI) agents and prediction markets will gain mainstream traction in 2026, further driving activity and adding value to the Ethereum ecosystem.
Ultimately, Sharplink’s CEO emphasized that Ethereum has the potential for impressive TVL growth in the near future due to the concentration of institutional investor interest from traditional financial companies, expansion of applications, and involvement of sovereign wealth funds.
Ethereum is currently trading at around $2,930, marking a 13% decline since the beginning of the year for the major altcoin. Compared to the all-time high of $4,964 hit earlier this year, the cryptocurrency is currently trading 40% below this level.
Featured image from DALL-E, chart from TradingView.com
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