Messari has been producing annual Crypto Theses reports since 2020 (Messari Archived Reports | Messari). The recent release of the Crypto Theses for 2025 marks the sixth iteration of this annual report.
These annual Messari reports have become a significant resource in the cryptocurrency industry, offering insights, predictions, and analysis of key trends shaping the crypto landscape for the upcoming year. The Crypto Theses reports have evolved over time, reflecting the rapid changes and developments in the cryptocurrency space. They cover a wide range of topics, from macroeconomic factors affecting crypto to specific technological advancements and regulatory developments and more.
I will preface this article by sharing a post from our new CEO, Dr. Avery Ching, where he highlights some of the focuses and goals for Aptos in the upcoming year of 2025:
Aptos is mentioned several times in this very thorough 190 page report. Aptos is mentioned in the following contexts:
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Aptos and its Move based competitor have had strong years, and an entirely new crop of Layer 1 blockchains are expected to emerge next year, which is discussed later in the report.
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Favorable conditions were created for last cycle’s rookies, Aptos and its Move based competitor. Both networks have surpassed the $1 billion Total Value Locked (TVL) milestone, signaling increasing developer and user confidence in exploring high-performance alternatives to the Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM). While much of their ecosystem growth stems from their native DeFi ecosystems, both projects have focused heavily on advancing their consensus mechanisms— such as Aptos with its ambitious Raptr proposal. Heading into the new year, both protocols are building on strong momentum, setting the stage for a competitive battle for mindshare among the emerging Move VM-based chains.
Other general highlights on the Web3 space that the report focuses on include various analyses on the different areas of the blockchain industry. The report makes several predictions for 2025 which will be outlined below.
General Predictions for 2025:
DeFi:
- The growth of decentralized exchanges and prediction markets is expected to continue.
- Real-world assets, particularly tokenized treasuries, will face headwinds as interest rates decline but have opportunities in capturing idle capital and serving as exchange collateral.
- The battle against MEV will intensify, with intent-based systems becoming more important.
- Chain abstraction will mature, improving user experiences and addressing liquidity gaps in the multichain ecosystem.
AI x Crypto:
- Decentralized model training faces challenges due to high costs, and teams may pivot towards fine-tuning smaller models or developing frameworks for local execution.
- AI agents and their associated memecoins are still experimental but have strong tailwinds, including increased onchain development and the potential to become liquid proxies for broader AI speculation.
DePIN:
- DePIN is poised for further growth, with several promising verticals such as energy, wireless, environmental data collection, mobility, and consumer applications.
- DePINs are expected to generate significant revenues, demonstrating their ability to create real-world value.
Consumer:
- Web3 gaming continues to mature, with increased player growth, the release of high-quality games, and adoption from Web2 companies.
- Telegram mini-games have emerged as a powerful distribution channel, and mobile adoption is expected to be a defining trend in 2025.
- Memecoins remain prominent.
- Decentralized social is gaining traction, with Farcaster and Lens leading the way, and front-end composability becoming increasingly important.
- NFTs are experiencing a quieter period, but blue-chip projects are building strong brands and consumer applications are improving the user experience.
CeFi:
- The success of Bitcoin and Ethereum ETFs is expected to continue, driving further institutional adoption.
- Centralized exchanges are innovating with new product offerings, regulatory compliance efforts, and onchain integrations.
- Stablecoins are becoming increasingly important, with their dollar-pegged stability, improved financial rails, and widespread use in emerging markets.
As the year comes to an end, it is always great to see such comprehensive reports from companies such as Messari which focus on research and data related to the cryptoeconomy. Read the entire report in the link below 
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