Yaroslav Ivanov at Consensus 2026: Crypto’s Institutional Era Became Impossible to Ignore

▤ Summary

Consensus 2026 highlighted a clear shift toward institutional involvement in crypto, with banks, asset managers, and public companies taking bigger roles. Yaroslav Ivanov argues the sector can accept institutional capital and regulated uses like tokenized equity while still protecting decentralization, self-custody, and open participation. Bullish’s announcement to tokenize NYSE-listed shares on Solana provided a concrete example of institutional-grade tokenization entering regulated market operations. The event exposed a tension between institutional priorities (settlement, compliance, liquidity) and the builder-driven values of sovereignty and permissionless innovation, which may shape crypto’s next era.

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