In a recent interview, Charles Hoskinson, the founder of Cardano, shared some bold insights regarding the cryptocurrency landscape for the upcoming year and his forecasts for 2026.
He emphasized that the market has transitioned into a new trend phase and made an astonishing prediction concerning Bitcoin’s price.
Hoskinson believes that Bitcoin could soar to $250,000 by 2026, attributing this potential surge to robust institutional demand. He pointed out that major financial institutions like Morgan Stanley have begun advising their private asset clients on cryptocurrency investments as a significant catalyst for this anticipated growth.
The emergence of custody-free lending protocols is crucial in facilitating Bitcoin’s value increase to influence altcoins positively, according to Hoskinson.
He noted that each generation within the crypto space introduces groundbreaking technological advancements. Following periods focused on smart contracts and scalability, he foresees “privacy” becoming the central theme in the coming year. However, he clarified that this notion of privacy will not be entirely opaque; instead, it will embody “rational privacy,” allowing users discretion over what information they share and with whom.
In line with this vision, Hoskinson introduced Midnight—a new fourth-generation blockchain project designed to serve as a “privacy API” not only for Cardano but also compatible with other networks such as Ethereum and Solana.
Reflecting on 2025’s prospects, he mentioned how excitement surrounding Trump’s election was dampened by various market anomalies. He suggested that projects like “Trumpcoin” and “World Liberty Financial” detracted from genuine interest in cryptocurrencies by dragging them into politically charged discussions.
Discussing Cardano’s trajectory moving forward, Hoskinson asserted that it has evolved beyond merely being a Layer-1 platform. He elaborated on plans to extend Cardano’s stability across other chains through their “Partner Chain” initiative while predicting substantial data influxes along with user engagement from the Midnight project into Cardano’s ecosystem.
Additonally ,he contended that Cardano stands out as one of the most stable networks available today—operating continuously without interruption for eight years now (24/7).
Eying competitors within this space ,Hoskinson acknowledged Solana’s short-term growth potential due its nimbleness but affirmed Ethereum’s long-term objective centered around “verifiable computing.” Nonetheless ,he indicated both platforms remain confined within their respective paradigms while suggesting future developments would lean towards systems based on proof mechanisms .
*This content does not constitute investment advice.