On March 18, 2026, Eastern Eight Time, the cryptocurrency market maintained relatively stable surface fluctuations against a complex macro backdrop. On one hand, the U.S. PPI for February exceeded expectations, with inflationary pressures continuing to rise; on the other hand, the upcoming Fed interest rate decision has led the market to widely bet on "holding steady," creating a combination of monetary policy uncertainty and price stickiness, making traditional asset allocation increasingly awkward. In this environment, the latest institutional survey provided a starkly different sentiment coordinate: 73% of institutions plan to increase their digital asset allocation before 2026, and 74% expect cryptocurrency prices to rise in the next 12 months, setting a warmer tone for the overall market risk appetite. Echoing this, one side features an on-chain asset management strategy launched by CoinShares and Kiln, representing compliance funding attempting to deeply integrate into DeFi; the other side sees a higher education initiative initiated by over 20 DeFi projects, quietly paving the way for future participants and developer ecosystems, these two main lines are sketching out a prototype of a "new order" in cryptocurrency.

Inflation Rises Again, Asset Anxiety Amid Fed's Watchful Waiting

The latest U.S. PPI for February exceeded market expectations, continuing the trend of rising inflation data over the past few months. Against this backdrop, the mainstream market judgment remains that the upcoming Federal Reserve meeting will keep interest rates unchanged, with the combination of high inflation and high interest rates continuing to exert a dual squeeze on corporate profits and asset valuations in the short term. The reality faced by investors is that traditional bonds have not regained their status as "safe and profitable," while equity assets are repeatedly caught in a tug-of-war over valuation and earnings mismatch, and cash lying in accounts is slowly being eroded by inflation.

In this situation, the resonance of high inflation with unchanged rates has intensified the allocation anxiety among global asset managers and institutional investors: on one hand, they must seek allocation tools that can hedge against "nominal returns being swallowed by inflation" within a regulatory acceptable framework; on the other hand, during crises, the correlation among categories like stocks, bonds, and real estate in traditional portfolios converges, weakening diversification effects and leaving room for a "new asset class" narrative and practice. It is not surprising that under such macro pressure, cryptocurrency assets, as "alternative assets," have re-entered broader institutional discussions.

It should be emphasized that the biggest variable surrounding this Fed decision is the "uncertainty" itself, rather than the outcome. This article does not make any predictions about future interest rate paths but focuses on how this policy uncertainty raises attention to cryptocurrency assets: as the marginal utility of traditional monetary policy tools is repeatedly questioned, some institutions have begun viewing cryptocurrency as an asset choice with low correlation to sovereign currency systems, capable of cross-border movement under geopolitical risks and trade frictions; this perspective is beginning to transition from the margins into more open questionnaires and reports.

73% Institutional Accumulation Plans: Cryptocurrency Moves from "Peripheral Asset" to Portfolio Member

The latest survey of institutional investors reveals that 73% of the surveyed institutions plan to increase their digital asset allocation before 2026, indicating that cryptocurrency assets are moving from a "discussion topic" to a piece of the formal asset allocation framework. More significantly, 74% of institutions expect cryptocurrency prices to rise over the next 12 months, reflecting a judgment on the pricing space for the coming year that is not a mere emotional outpouring from retail forums but is influenced by risk control constraints, performance pressures, and fiduciary responsibilities, indicating a more binding form of "optimism."

It is noteworthy that about two-thirds of the institutions express a preference for regulated investment tools to access this asset class. This data breaks down the vague "institutional enthusiasm" into three very realistic demands: a comprehensible compliance framework, security with accountability, and liquidity assurance for large-scale entry and exit. What it reflects is not an infinite faith in the DeFi world, but rather a refined demand for "how to controllably access cryptocurrencies" within the traditional financial risk framework.

In stark contrast, CZ publicly criticized the U.S. domestic cryptocurrency market for its lack of competition and high trading platform fees, revealing the current supply-side structural issues: under high regulatory pressure and licensing thresholds, there are not ample compliant channels available for institutions to use on a large scale, with manageable costs. The enthusiasm "to come" among institutions starkly contrasts with the reality of the local market "not providing sufficiently good products," creating a strong dislocation that serves as both a source of short-term friction and the largest incremental space for future track expansion.

Meanwhile, geopolitical risks and potential regression in global trade expectations are silently changing how institutions evaluate asset properties. In the face of a potentially more fragmented trade landscape, friction costs in cross-border settlement and capital movement may rise, and those assets capable of circulating across jurisdictions, technically independent from the infrastructure of a single nation, and showing certain "anti-fragile" characteristics in extreme situations, will naturally garner more allocation discussions. While cryptocurrency assets may not solve all macro challenges, their features of being "cross-border and technology-neutral" are being pushed to a more prominent position in this reevaluation of institutional demand.

CoinShares Bets on On-Chain Asset Management and Compliant DeFi Channels

In the process of institutionalization, the on-chain asset management strategy launched by CoinShares in collaboration with Kiln represents a significant move: traditional asset management institutions have not simply stopped at "issuing more regulated products," but have reached directly into the blockchain, viewing DeFi as an infrastructure that can be integrated into asset management business processes. This is not just a marketing story for a single product, but rather an exploratory move for compliant funds to "participate natively" in the on-chain economy.

The reality that two-thirds of institutions prefer regulated investment tools will inevitably promote the rise of RWA (Real World Assets on Chain) and on-chain asset management tracks. For these institutions, the ideal scenario is not blindly chasing returns in opaque on-chain protocols, but under a compliance cloak, using familiar KYC, custody, and auditing frameworks to treat the on-chain as a new clearing and settlement foundation. This mode allows the risk control and compliance logic of traditional finance to be integrated into the crypto world with minimal alteration.

For on-chain asset management to win institutional trust, it needs to find a delicate balance between return transparency, custody methods, and compliance structures: on one hand, on-chain ledgers can naturally provide transparency in the flow of funds, facilitating audits and risk monitoring; on the other hand, large amounts of capital require clear custody arrangements, responsibility sharing, and compliance disclosures to meet internal compliance and regulatory requirements. By partially bringing strategy logic on-chain while keeping custody and compliance frameworks offline or within permissible regulatory structures, such products are expected to significantly lower the psychological and institutional barriers for traditional institutions "entering the circle."

Currently, CoinShares has not disclosed the specific returns or asset basket structure of this on-chain asset management strategy, making it difficult for the outside world to make any informed inferences about its returns. From an industry perspective, the symbolic significance of this action is greater than its short-term performance: it indicates that some leading traditional institutions are no longer satisfied with "selling tickets from outside the chain," but are beginning to explore how to provide asset management services directly on-chain, pushing "on-chain asset management" from concept to a product form accepted by risk control systems. This symbolic breakthrough is itself a key node in the shaping process of the new order.

Over 20 DeFi Projects Enter Campuses, Reshaping the Next Generation of Participants

Alongside the institutionalization on the asset management side, there is a fundamental reconstruction on the educational front. The latest information shows that over 20 DeFi projects are promoting the inclusion of cryptocurrency and DeFi education into university curricula, signifying that the industry is no longer solely relying on price cycles and speculative narratives to attract new users but is actively shaping the cognitive framework of the next generation of participants with more systematic knowledge and tools.

Systematic education is expected to rewrite the past path where "retail investors enter through speculation and passively learn about risks in bull and bear cycles." By introducing fundamentals of cryptography, smart contract security, on-chain governance, and economic models at the university level, future participants are likely to enter with a perspective of "understanding protocols and risks" from the very beginning, rather than merely viewing cryptocurrency as a highly volatile lottery ticket. This upgrade in participant structure will directly affect market depth, governance quality, and innovation pace in the long run.

University education is also a natural convergence point for developer ecosystems and research resources. As more courses, workshops, and research projects unfold around DeFi, related academic papers, tool libraries, test networks, and security audit methods will be further refined and disseminated, providing crucial but hard-to-quantify "soft power" support for the industry. At the same time, academic institutions often maintain communication channels with regulatory bodies and policymakers, and more neutral, fact-based research outcomes related to cryptocurrency and DeFi in universities may provide reference coordinates in future regulatory dialogues, reducing "hasty generalizations."

It should be noted that specific details about which universities are participating and the course content and timetable are yet to be disclosed, thus, the potential impact of this "educational push" can only be assessed from a trend perspective. From a long-term viewpoint, it sows seeds for a batch of future developers, entrepreneurs, and regulatory interlocutors equipped with technical literacy, risk awareness, and compliance knowledge, and such changes in talent structure are often the true leading indicators of institutional and product innovation.

HYPE Slightly Rises and Chain-on Sentiment: Dislocation of Short-Term Noise and Structural Upgrades

On March 18, Eastern Eight Time, above the macro and institutional narrative, individual token markets provided another "temperature reading." The current price of HYPE is approximately $40.97, with a 24-hour increase of 0.66%, marking a very typical "slight increase" status: neither fanatic nor panic, more like a slight release of risk appetite swinging between macro uncertainty and institutional optimism.

In the absence of further disclosures, this article does not speculate on the specific reasons behind the short-term price fluctuations of HYPE, viewing it merely as an on-chain sentiment thermometer. A 0.66% daily increase indicates that, at least on that day, the market did not witness a one-sided stampede or extreme short-squeeze scenario, with capital still willing to bear certain volatility on localized targets, trying to capture returns within a range, echoing a cautious optimism under the macro context of "high inflation + rate uncertainty."

When the perspective is extended, the daily commotion of this single token illustrates a clear time dimension dislocation with the long-term intention of institutions to increase allocations before 2026 and their overall bullish outlook for the next 12 months. The former is more the result of traders and arbitrage capital playing "in the moment," heavily influenced by liquidity, sentiment, and microstructure; the latter concerns the systemic upgrade of funding forms, custody structures, compliance frameworks, and asset class positioning. Confusing the two often underestimates the profound impacts of structural changes.

Therefore, as we observe this round of institutional enthusiasm and educational investments, what is more worth focusing on is the changing funding forms and participant profiles: who is entering through which channels, using what tools, and what risk constraints and education they are subject to, rather than being fixated on how much a particular token has risen or fallen today. Short-term candlestick patterns are always clamorous, but what truly outlines the industry’s "new order" are these seemingly slow yet continuously advancing structural adjustments.

Regulatory Games Continue; Institutions and DeFi are Jointly Reshaping Order

Considering the current landscape, macro pressures have not eased: inflation data remains stubborn, the monetary policy outlook remains unclear, and geopolitical and trade risks still lurk in the background; meanwhile, regulatory frameworks concerning cryptocurrency remain lagging in many jurisdictions, and many details are still in the "trial and error" exploratory phase. However, parallel to this uncertainty is the genuine, ongoing demand for allocation by institutions, as well as the long-term investments by leading DeFi projects in education—these two forces are jointly driving cryptocurrency assets from the margins into mainstream discussions.

From an evolutionary pathway perspective, three interwoven main lines can be clearly delineated: the first is the expansion of regulated investment tools, including more compliant product forms, trading venues, and custody structures, to provide explainable and compliant entry channels for institutional funds; the second is the deepening of on-chain asset management and RWA, represented by movements like CoinShares, attempting to migrate traditional asset management logic to on-chain execution and settlement layers, seeking a balance between return transparency and compliance constraints; the third is the new generation of participants nurtured through campus education, laying the cognitive and technical foundation for developers, entrepreneurs, and regulatory interlocutors in the coming decade through university courses and research collaborations led by over 20 DeFi projects.

The real key uncertainty lies in the speed of iteration of regulation and market infrastructure: if regulation adapts and infrastructure construction keeps pace with institutional demand and educational dividends, this round of "institutional enthusiasm" is likely to solidify into a new long-term asset allocation paradigm, advancing the cryptocurrency realm from speculation dominance to a mature phase supported by institutionalization, toolization, and education; conversely, if approval processes are slow, policies are erratic, and infrastructure bottlenecks persist, this enthusiasm could just as easily dissipate amid high thresholds and friction, leaving behind another unfinished narrative. Standing in March 2026, this contest over a new order in cryptocurrency has only just entered a critical chapter.

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