Crypto’s next major development may not be another digital asset class, but the infrastructure needed to create continuously tradable markets around events, commodities and private companies, according to an analysis by Annabelle Huang, co-founder and chief executive of blockchain infrastructure company Altius Labs, published by CoinDesk.
From creating assets to creating markets
The crypto industry’s early history was defined by the launch of new assets. Bitcoin established a new digital asset, followed by derivatives linked to it, Ether and competing blockchain tokens. The market later expanded into governance tokens, non-fungible tokens and memecoins, each creating a new category around which trading could develop.
Huang argues that the sector’s focus is now moving in a different direction: building markets for things that already exist. She points to three examples: prediction markets, oil and gold perpetual contracts on Hyperliquid, and perpetual contracts tied to private companies before they go public.
These products do not necessarily give traders ownership of the underlying subject. Instead, they create a live market for information, expectations or price exposure. A prediction market can reflect views about an event, while a commodity perpetual can track the market’s changing assessment of oil or gold. A pre-IPO perpetual can provide a real-time signal about how traders value a private company, even when they cannot buy its shares.
The broader idea is that blockchain networks can turn subjects that were previously discussed mostly in qualitative terms into continuously updated market prices. Elections, inflation data, commodity prices, corporate milestones and private-company valuations all attract attention. If that attention can be converted into trading activity, it may produce a measurable view of what an event is worth or how likely it is to happen.
Price discovery becomes the product
In conventional finance, price discovery is generally understood as the process through which buyers and sellers arrive at a price. Trading takes place, and the resulting price is treated as the output of that activity.
The products emerging in crypto place greater emphasis on price discovery itself. Traders may not need to own an asset if they value a continuously updated signal about its perceived worth. Under that model, the market acts as an information engine: its main product is an indication of collective expectations.
That distinction is especially visible in pre-IPO perpetual contracts. A trader holding such a contract does not hold shares in the private company linked to it. The position does not provide shareholder rights or a direct claim on the company’s future cash flows. It is exposure to a market view, rather than equity ownership.
The appeal of exposure reflects a broader role played by derivatives. Participants can use these instruments to express a view on an asset or event without possessing the underlying item. Blockchain-based markets could extend that approach to subjects that have traditionally been difficult to trade or reprice frequently.
Continuous and broader participation
Traditional markets do not always respond when new information appears. Public-company prices are generally discovered during market hours, while private firms may be repriced only during funding rounds or formal valuation exercises. Important developments can occur outside those windows, leaving conventional markets unable to adjust immediately.
Blockchain-based markets are designed to operate continuously, 24 hours a day, seven days a week. That allows trading and price updates to continue as information emerges, rather than waiting for the next session or valuation event.
Access is another difference highlighted in the analysis. Trading private equity through conventional channels typically involves accreditation, specialised relationships and substantial capital, limiting participation. Blockchain markets can allow anyone with an internet connection to express a market view, although access to a market does not change the distinction between a derivative position and ownership of the underlying asset.
If markets aggregate information, broader participation could contribute more viewpoints to that process. But the usefulness of the resulting price signal depends on whether the market can support efficient trading and sufficient liquidity.
Infrastructure is the key test
Building a market around an existing asset or event is not as simple as issuing a token. Continuous global markets require technology capable of handling demanding trading conditions. Huang identifies throughput, latency, liquidity depth and reliability as important requirements.
Throughput refers broadly to how much activity a network can process, while latency concerns how quickly it can respond. Liquidity depth determines how easily participants can trade without substantially moving prices, and reliability is essential if markets are expected to operate continuously.
The analysis says many blockchain networks still face limitations in these areas. Infrastructure bottlenecks can weaken the quality of price signals and restrict participation. For crypto to serve as a large-scale engine for price discovery, it would need to support high-frequency trading environments, sophisticated risk-management systems and deep pools of capital.
Moneyiar market picture
Moneyiar data at 10:03-10:04 on October 7, 2026, showed mixed performance among the selected assets:
- Uniswap (UNI): $8.0562971097, down 9.15% over 24 hours and 8.79% over seven days.
- Nexus (NEX): $0.0000008091, down 0.64% over 24 hours and 1.89% over seven days.
- ONEchain (ONE): $0.1384189575, down 5.24% over 24 hours but up 1.04% over seven days.
- REAL (ASSET): $0.2063109401, up 7.73% over 24 hours and down 11.35% over seven days.
The central argument is that crypto’s long-term value may increasingly come from its ability to provide information about existing assets and events, rather than only from creating new tokens. That would make the performance of the underlying market infrastructure—rather than the novelty of an asset—the critical factor in determining whether these markets can expand.
