The crypto industry might be entering its next major phase of growth, and this time it could be driven by something many thought was dead — ICOs. But not the wild, unregulated token sales of 2017. Bitwise Chief Investment Officer Matt Hougan believes compliant ICOs could be the catalyst for the next bull market.
In a client note released late Tuesday, Hougan said Coinbase’s launch of a new token sale platform on November 10 marks the beginning of a “regulated comeback” for crypto-based capital formation. The platform is designed to give startups a legal, transparent way to raise funds through token offerings — a process that could redefine how innovation is financed in Web3.
“Capital formation is the fourth pillar of crypto’s disruption of traditional finance,” Hougan explained. “Bitcoin reinvented gold, stablecoins reinvented dollars, tokenization reinvented trading and settlement — and now, crypto is reinventing how entrepreneurs raise money.”
According to Hougan, this evolution has the potential to create multitrillion-dollar opportunities and drive long-term growth for the industry. He envisions a future where “most assets are tokenized, most dollars move via stablecoin rails, and bitcoin is as trusted as gold.”
A New Era of Regulated Token Sales
The new Coinbase program will launch one vetted crypto project each month, complete with strict disclosure rules and insider lockups to avoid speculative dumping. The first project, Monad, will hold its MON token sale from November 17 to 22, just before its mainnet debut on November 24.
Hougan emphasized that these structural safeguards are what separate this new generation of token sales from the 2017–2018 ICO mania, which ended in scandals, losses, and regulatory action.
“As bad as the original ICO wave was, it proved something important — crypto can raise capital faster and cheaper than Wall Street,” Hougan wrote. “The difference this time is compliance and investor protection.”
Policy Shifts and Industry Momentum
Hougan pointed to recent remarks by SEC Chair Paul Atkins, who has advocated for new regulations and safe harbors to enable compliant token offerings. Atkins, a long-time supporter of blockchain innovation, previously co-chaired the Token Alliance and sat on the board of tokenization firm Securitize.
This changing regulatory tone, combined with Coinbase’s proactive self-regulation, could reignite interest in crypto fundraising — but this time, with institutional confidence.
The Road Ahead
Hougan predicts that by 2026, “a half-dozen or more billion-dollar ICOs” could emerge through compliant platforms, potentially rivaling traditional IPOs. For context, the U.S. saw 176 IPOs in 2024, raising a total of $33 billion.
Such a resurgence could make crypto more accessible for everyday investors while giving startups an efficient alternative to venture capital and public markets. “Coinbase isn’t just the Charles Schwab of crypto,” Hougan added. “It’s Charles Schwab, Goldman Sachs, and the NYSE all in one.”
BitAs for investors, Hougan believes the implications are clear. “Crypto already became more interesting after stablecoins and tokenization,” he said. “If compliant ICOs take off, the story only gets stronger.”
