a16z: Seven core crypto trends in 2025

Original title: " 7 Big Ideas for 2025 (and more trends to watch) "

Author: a16zcrypto

Compiled by: Ismay, BlockBeats

Abstract: This article will discuss seven core encryption trends, covering stablecoins, app stores, decentralized governance and other fields. These trends will not only promote the development of the industry, but also provide new perspectives for future technological innovation and applications.

The following is the original content:

Some trends we’re watching

a16z has released a comprehensive list of "Big Ideas" for the coming year based on its partners' observations in areas such as AI, American Vitality, Life Sciences/Health, Cryptocurrency, Enterprise Services, Fintech, Gaming, and Infrastructure. Inspiring tech builders.

Here are some of the top ideas shared by members of the cryptocurrency team, and for more exciting content, read the full article.

If you want to know the outlook for policy, regulation, etc. in 2025, please see this article published in November.

1. Businesses will increasingly accept stablecoin payments

Over the past year, stablecoins have found product-market fit—no surprise, as stablecoins are currently the lowest-cost way to send dollars, enabling fast global payments. In addition, stablecoins provide entrepreneurs with a more convenient platform to develop new payment products: no middlemen, minimum balance restrictions or proprietary SDKs are required. But large enterprises have yet to realize the huge cost savings and entirely new profit margins that come with switching to these payment rails.

While we are already seeing some corporate interest in stablecoins (and early applications in peer-to-peer payments), I expect a much larger wave of experimentation in 2025. Small/medium-sized businesses (such as restaurants, coffee shops and convenience stores) with strong brand influence, loyal customer base and facing high payment costs may be the first to switch from credit cards to stablecoin payments. These businesses don't benefit from the fraud protection of credit cards (especially for in-person transactions), and high transaction fees have a disproportionate impact on their bottom line (a 30-cent fee per cup of coffee is a significant loss in profit).

We should also expect larger enterprises to start adopting stablecoins. If stablecoins can accelerate the evolution of banking history, then companies will try to disintermediate payment providers—adding 2% of profits directly to their bottom line. Additionally, businesses will begin to look for new solutions to problems that credit card companies currently address, such as fraud protection and identity verification.

—Sam Broner (X platform @sambroner | Farcaster platform @sambroner)

2. Countries are exploring putting national debt on the blockchain

Putting Treasury bonds on the blockchain would create a government-backed, interest-bearing digital asset while avoiding the regulatory privacy issues that come with central bank digital currencies (CBDC). Such products can provide new sources of collateral demand for lending and derivatives protocols in DeFi (decentralized finance), thereby adding more stability and credibility to these ecosystems.

As pro-innovation governments around the world further explore the benefits and efficiencies of public, permissionless and immutable blockchains this year, some countries may pilot the issuance of on-chain treasury bonds. For example, the UK has explored digital securities through a sandbox project set up by its financial regulator FCA (Financial Conduct Authority); the UK Treasury has also expressed its intention to issue digital bonds.

In the U.S., expect more discussion about how blockchain can improve transparency, efficiency and participation in bond trading as the SEC (Securities and Exchange Commission) plans next year to require the clearing of Treasury bonds through traditional cumbersome and costly infrastructure.

—Brian Quintenz (X platform @brianquintenz | Farcaster platform @brianq)

3. “DUNA” will become the new industry standard for U.S. blockchain networks

In 2024, Wyoming passed a new law officially recognizing DAOs (Decentralized Autonomous Organizations) as legal entities. DUNA (Decentralized Unincorporated Non-Profit Association) is specifically designed to support the decentralized governance of blockchain networks and is currently the only feasible legal structure for U.S. projects. By incorporating DUNA into a decentralized legal entity structure, crypto projects and other decentralized communities are able to give their DAOs legal status—thus facilitating broader economic activity while protecting token holders from legal liability and properly Address tax and compliance needs.

As a community that governs open blockchain network affairs, DAO is an important tool to ensure that the network remains open, fair and avoids unreasonable value extraction. DUNA can unleash the potential of DAO, and several projects are currently promoting its implementation. As the United States further supports and accelerates the development of its crypto ecosystem in 2025, I expect DUNA to become the industry standard for U.S. crypto projects. Additionally, other states are likely to follow suit and adopt similar structures (Wyoming led the way; they were also the first to adopt the now widely used LLC) - especially in other decentralized applications outside of the crypto space ( such as physical infrastructure/energy grid).

—Miles Jennings (X platform @milesjennings | Farcaster platform @milesjennings)

4. Developers will reuse rather than reinvent infrastructure

Over the past year, the team has continued to "reinvent the wheel" in the blockchain technology stack - such as developing yet another customized set of validators, consensus protocol implementations, execution engines, programming languages, and RPC APIs. These attempts may provide slight improvements in certain specific functions, but often fall short in broader or basic functions. Take, for example, a programming language designed specifically for SNARKs: ideally, such a language would help top developers build better-performing SNARKs, but in practice, it might be incompatible with compiler optimizations, development tools, online learning materials, and AI. Programming support and other aspects lag behind general-purpose programming languages ​​(at least for now), and may even lead to poor SNARK performance.

Therefore, I expect that 2025 will see more teams building on the work of others and reusing off-the-shelf blockchain infrastructure components - from consensus protocols and existing staked capital to proof systems. Not only does this approach help developers save a lot of time and effort, it also allows them to focus on building the unique value of their product or service.

Today, the infrastructure required to develop Web3 products and services for the general public is basically in place. As in other industries, the teams that ultimately succeed will be those that can effectively leverage complex supply chains, not those that scoff at “not homegrown” technology.

—Joachim Neu (X platform @jneu_net)

5. The encryption industry welcomes exclusive app stores and content discovery channels

When encrypted apps are blocked by centralized platforms such as Apple’s App Store or Google Play, their top channels for user acquisition are limited. However, we are now seeing emerging app stores and marketplaces offering distribution and content discovery capabilities without rigorous review. For example, Worldcoin’s World App marketplace—which not only stores authentication information but also provides access to “mini-apps”—brought hundreds of thousands of users to multiple apps in just a few days. Another example is Solana’s zero-fee dApp Store exclusive to mobile users. These cases also show that it’s not just software, but hardware (such as phones or authentication devices) that can become a key advantage of encrypted app stores, just as Apple devices once drove the development of early app ecosystems.

At the same time, there are other stores containing thousands of decentralized applications and Web3 development tools (such as Alchemy), as well as blockchains that serve as game publishers and distribution platforms (such as Ronin). But this is not entirely an entertainment ecosystem: if a product already has an established distribution channel (such as a messaging application), it is not easy to migrate it to the chain (the exception is the Telegram/TON network). The same is true for applications that have significant distribution advantages in the Web2 ecosystem. However, 2025 may see more of these migrations taking place.

——Maggie Hsu (X platform @meigga | Farcaster platform @maggiehsu)

6. From holders to users: the transformation of crypto users

2024 saw important developments in the crypto space at the political level, with many key policymakers and politicians expressing positive views on it. At the same time, crypto as a financial movement continues to grow (e.g., Bitcoin and Ethereum ETPs broaden investor participation channels). In 2025, encryption is expected to further develop into a computing technology movement. But where will the next user group come from?

I believe it is time to reactivate those currently “passive” crypto asset holders and convert them into more active users. Because currently only 5-10% of crypto asset holders are actively using crypto technology. We can bring the 617 million people who already hold crypto assets onto the chain, especially as blockchain infrastructure continues to improve and user transaction fees continue to decrease. This means new applications will gradually emerge for existing and new users. At the same time, some of the early applications we have seen – covering areas such as stablecoins, DeFi, NFTs, games, social, DePIN, DAOs, and prediction markets – are beginning to change as the community increasingly focuses on user experience and other optimizations. more easily accepted by mainstream users.

——Daren Matsuoka (X Platform @darenmatsuoka | Farcaster Platform)

7. "Hidden technical details" help the birth of Web3's killer application

The technical advantages of the blockchain industry make it unique, but it also hinders acceptance by mainstream users to a certain extent. For creators and fans, blockchain technology brings new possibilities for connectivity, ownership, and monetization... However, industry terminology (such as "NFTs", "zkRollups", etc.) and complex designs have become barriers that stand in the way of those who would most benefit from it. I know this firsthand from countless conversations with executives in media, music, and fashion about Web3.

Many mass adoptions of consumer technology have followed a similar path: the technology comes first, and then an iconic company or designer abstracts the complexity, leading to breakthrough applications. Think back to the evolution of email, where the SMTP protocol was hidden behind a "send" button; or credit cards, where most users today don't care about the payment rails behind them. Likewise, Spotify's music revolution came not by showing off file formats, but by delivering playlists directly to users' fingertips. As Nassim Taleb said: "Over-engineering leads to brittleness, simplicity is scalable."

Therefore, I think that in 2025 our industry will adopt this concept: "Hide the technical details." The best decentralized applications have begun to focus on more intuitive interface designs, making operations as easy as tapping the screen or swiping a card. In 2025, we will see more companies committing to clean design and clear communication; successful products require no explanation, they directly solve a problem.

—Chris Lyons (X Platform @chrislyons | Farcaster Platform)

6 major trends in decentralized governance in 2025

2025 will be an exciting year for decentralized governance. Decentralized autonomous organizations (DAOs) are constantly breaking through innovation and exploring new models for shared governance among anonymous token holders. Investment managers are trying to persuade clients to participate in online shareholder voting more frequently. At the same time, AI companies are also beginning to use citizen assemblies to set specifications for large language models (LLMs). These efforts will lead to the simultaneous launch of multiple decentralized governance experiments, including:

1. A website that helps voters vote by proxy
2. Artificial Intelligence Assisted Delegation Mechanism
3. AI acts as agent
4. A smarter participation incentive mechanism
5. More efficient financial support for public goods
6. More experiments in lottery governance