Bitcoin and the rest of the crypto market are stuck in a slow, uncomfortable phase. Prices are down, momentum is thin, and confidence is cautious. It feels heavy. But this cycle is different in one important way. The system is holding together.
In past downturns, price weakness exposed deep cracks. Exchanges collapsed. Lenders blew up. Liquidity vanished overnight. This time, despite drawdowns, there has been no FTX moment. No chain reaction of failures. The market is bruised, but it is still standing.
That matters more than price.
Why This Cycle Feels More Stable
Chainlink co founder Sergey Nazarov put it simply. In previous cycles, falling prices revealed hidden risks. This cycle has absorbed pressure without breaking. According to him, crypto systems handled price and liquidity stress better than before, creating a more reliable environment for both retail and institutional investors.
This does not mean the market is healthy. It means the plumbing works. And in finance, plumbing matters.
While traders focus on charts, something else is quietly happening under the surface.
Real World Assets Are Moving On Chain Anyway
Real world assets, often called RWAs, are growing on blockchains regardless of where Bitcoin trades. Tokenized treasuries, commodities, and on chain versions of traditional financial products continue to expand even as crypto prices struggle.
Nazarov pointed out that this growth has little to do with speculation. It is driven by practical advantages. On chain markets run all day, every day. Collateral can be managed transparently. Market data is accessible and verifiable. For institutions, this is infrastructure, not a trade.
He also highlighted the rise of on chain perpetual markets for traditional assets like silver. In some cases, these markets are starting to rival traditional venues, especially when access to permissioned markets becomes restrictive or risky.
What Is Actually Driving Adoption Now
According to Nazarov, three forces are shaping the next phase of crypto adoption.
First, tokenized real world assets and on chain perpetual markets offer long term utility. They do not depend on hype cycles.
Second, institutions are not coming because prices go up. They are coming because permissionless, always on markets solve real problems traditional systems struggle with.
Third, infrastructure demand is rising fast. As assets become more complex, the need for reliable tokenization systems, data feeds, and market operations grows with them.
If these trends continue, Nazarov believes the total value of real world assets on chain could eventually surpass native cryptocurrencies. Not replace them, but reshape the industry around them.
Developers Are Already Betting on This Direction
Developer activity supports that view. Data from Santiment shows strong development across RWA focused projects over the past month.
Hedera ranked first, followed by Chainlink and Avalanche. Stellar and IOTA came next. Projects like Chia Network, VeChain, Creditcoin, Injective, and others rounded out the top ten.
This matters because developers move before capital does. Even during market weakness, they are building where they see long term value.
The Bigger Picture
Crypto prices may be stuck, but progress has not stopped. This cycle is quieter, more disciplined, and more focused on infrastructure than speculation.
The market is not celebrating, it is preparing, and that is usually how the next phase begins.
