Podcast Ep.318 — The "Crypto Narrative" That Faded Away Like a Trend… What Will Truly Survive in 2025?

According to the 2025 Cryptocurrency Narrative Analysis Report released by Tiger Research, this year’s market is experiencing an unprecedented rapid shift in narratives, at a crossroads of evolution. From meme coins to privacy, information finance, and other keywords emerging one after another, some have led industry expansion, but most have disappeared after short-term attention.

The report pays special attention to the widespread popularity of meme coins. Tokens leveraging celebrity effects of figures like Trump, Elon Musk, and Sidney Sweeney have attracted significant attention and brought in many new users. Intuitive concepts and simple trading services lowered the participation threshold, but most users did not stay long-term. This reveals the importance of retention strategies that provide “reasons to stay,” which are far more crucial than merely attracting user inflow.

Another trend worth noting in 2025 is “information finance.” Through platforms like Kaito, users can produce information and receive corresponding rewards. This model has stimulated active participation from retail users but has also led to quality challenges in the information ecosystem due to overly competitive and provocative content. This exposes the potential consequences of reward mechanism designs that may disrupt quality balance.

As institutional investors officially enter the market, the privacy trend has become increasingly prominent. On-chain transparency offers advantages in credibility and openness, but for institutional participants unwilling to expose strategic information, it poses obstacles. Just as OTC trading is favored in traditional finance, the report analyzes that in the cryptocurrency market, privacy protection is no longer a secondary concern.

Meanwhile, 2025 has also seen many practical applications of cryptocurrencies that were long discussed in abstract terms. Stablecoins, prediction markets, and the x402 series products have enabled cross-border trust transactions and demonstrated the core advantage of blockchain—transactions without intermediaries. These cases prove that under certain conditions, cryptocurrencies can achieve clear product-market fit.

Tiger Research’s analysis points out that although these narratives often have short lifespans, they provide a testing ground for the market. The report also views the shift from a DeFi-centric closed loop to a more mainstream-friendly direction as a positive change. Ultimately, 2025 surpasses failure and exhaustion, playing the role of a “filter” that screens out feasible structures.