Crypto Market: Layoffs and M&A in Unprecedented Coexistence
The prolonged Bitcoin downturn has triggered massive layoffs across the crypto industry in 2026, with multiple indicators pointing to a market-wide contraction. Yet, contrary to the bleak employment picture, merger and acquisition activity has hit a new record. In the first half of the year, global crypto-related M&A totaled $9.37 billion, far exceeding the volume of the same period last year.
Traditional Financial Giants Take the Lead: Mastercard, Franklin Templeton Top the List
The protagonists of this M&A wave are no longer native crypto funds or exchanges. Instead, traditional financial institutions such as Mastercard and Franklin Templeton are aggressively acquiring payment processing, digital asset custody, and compliance licensing infrastructure. Their focus is squarely on stablecoin use cases and institutional-grade deployment scenarios. This signals that Wall Street is choosing to 'buy and build' to capture core assets of the sector, rather than starting from scratch.
Capital Preference Shifts: Practicality Over Pure Decentralization
Unlike the 2021–2022 narrative frenzy that poured money into DeFi and metaverse tokens, current capital favors projects with clear revenue models and regulatory compliance paths. Purely decentralized initiatives lacking real-world traction and public chains without active user bases are being sidelined. The market is undergoing a paradigm shift from 'narrative-driven' to 'execution-driven' investment.