Ethereum's total value locked (TVL) could skyrocket tenfold in 2026, driven by expanding institutional adoption, a booming stablecoin market, and the tokenization of real-world assets (RWAs), according to Joseph Chalom, co-CEO of Sharplink Gaming. Sharplink is the second-largest public Ethereum treasury company, holding 797,704 ETH worth approximately $2.33 billion.
Chalom made his predictions in an X post on Friday, forecasting that the stablecoin market capitalization will reach $500 billion by the end of 2026, a roughly 62% increase from its current level of around $308.46 billion. With over half (54%) of all stablecoin activity occurring on the Ethereum network, this growth is expected to significantly contribute to an increase in Ethereum's TVL, which currently stands at about $68.20 billion according to DeFiLlama.
In a parallel development highlighting institutional momentum, Ethereum treasury firm Bitmine has begun staking Ether. On Sunday, wallets linked to Bitmine transferred 74,880 ETH (worth nearly $219 million) to a "BatchDeposit" contract, a transaction pattern associated with institutional staking setups. On-chain analyst EmberCN noted this is Bitmine's first staking attempt. The firm now holds over 4.06 million ETH. If all of it were staked at the current approximate APY of 3.12%, it could generate annual interest worth about $371 million.
Chalom also projected explosive growth for the tokenized RWA market, expecting it to reach $300 billion in 2026. "Tokenized assets will 10X in AUM in 2026, going from tokenizing individual funds, stocks, and bonds to full fund complexes," he said, citing rising interest from major financial institutions like JPMorgan, Franklin Templeton, and BlackRock as a key catalyst.
Furthermore, Chalom anticipates that sovereign wealth funds will increase their Ethereum holdings and tokenization activity by five- to tenfold over the next year. He also predicted that on-chain AI agents and prediction markets will "go mainstream," driving more activity and value to the Ethereum ecosystem.
Despite these bullish fundamentals, the price of Ether has faced recent headwinds. At the time of publication, ETH is trading at $2,924, down 3.12% over the past 30 days and 12.36% over the past 12 months. Crypto analyst Benjamin Cowen stated on Tuesday that Ether is unlikely to hit new highs in the coming year given current market conditions for Bitcoin.
