Surge in Tokenisation and Listed Companies Transform Crypto Landscape
The share of revenue from listed firms in the crypto sector has almost doubled, highlighting a significant industry shift.
Growing Presence of Listed Companies
In a striking transformation, the revenue generated by listed companies within the cryptocurrency sector surged to 16 percent in 2026, up from just 7 percent in 2022. This remarkable increase demonstrates the growing influence of institutional players in the crypto market, as noted in a recent report by crypto investment firm 1kx.
According to 1kx, which analyzed data from over 2,600 protocols and financial results from 104 publicly trade companies, the overall revenue of the crypto industry for this year is projected at $100 billion. This figure reflects a decrease of 28 percent compared to the previous year, yet the contribution from listed firms has notably expanded.
Influence of New Listings and Existing Firms
The uptick in revenue can be attributed to both the introduction of new listings and the revenue growth of established companies. Notably, Circle was incorporated into the data following its initial public offering in 2025.
The report highlighted that the combined crypto-related earnings for the top 10 firms surveyed doubled over the past three years, with the leading six firms accounting for approximately 50 to 60 percent of total revenue among listed companies. This shows a significant concentration of revenue within a small group of firms.
Company Revenue Breakdown
Major players such as Coinbase and Circle reported a joint crypto-related revenue of about $3.3 billion for the first half of this year. Moreover, revenues coming from publicly traded Bitcoin mining companies reached around $2 billion. Traditional financial institutions had a combined crypto-related revenue of $1.1 billion, with companies like JPMorgan, BlackRock, CME Group, Visa, and Robinhood contributing to this figure.
Shifts in Revenue Structure
The landscape of revenue generation has also evolved. In the third quarter alone, revenue from areas utilizing crypto in real-world applications—such as tokenised assets, payment systems, and predictive markets—amounted to approximately $5.3 billion. This figure surpassed the revenue generated from infrastructure-related crypto services, which stood at $5.1 billion for the first time.
Growth in real-world-use areas was particularly notable, increasing by 58 percent in the first half of the year compared to the same period last year. According to 1kx, institutional adoption and revenues from real-world applications accounted for around 33 percent of total crypto revenue in Q3, with the projection for the entire year hovering around 30 percent.
Expanding Tokenisation Market
The tokenisation market is experiencing substantial growth as well. Data from RWA.xyz revealed that the valuation of decentralized tokenised real-world assets surged by approximately 51 percent, climbing to $39.54 billion on October 29, up from $26.16 billion in October 2025. In addition, the value of tokenised stocks skyrocketed by 471 percent during the same timeframe, reaching $3.77 billion.
This report illustrates a significant diversification in the cryptocurrency industry's revenue streams, shifting from a sole focus on trading infrastructure to encompassing tokenisation and payment solutions. As total revenue may be declining, the participation of listed companies and institutional investors is on the rise, with real-world-use areas marking notable growth.