New-chain launches are far from over, but the playbook is changing. Robinhood Chain crossed $10 billion of DEX volume in 22 days, showing how an established consumer platform can bootstrap liquidity and activity far faster than a standalone network building distribution from scratch. More than 80% of early DEX volume was memecoin-driven, but roughly $70 million of tokenized real-world assets and more than $400 million of stablecoins point to a broader financial stack taking shape. Building on the success of chain integrations by Coinbase and Telegram, Robinhood may be the turning point where app-owned chains become a repeatable vertical integration strategy across distribution, trading, settlement, and economics.

Trading activity in crypto treasury preferreds has accelerated sharply in 2026, with monthly par-normalized volume reaching approximately $13B in June. The step-change has been driven by STRC and a growing number of new preferred listings, transforming what was once a niche market for bespoke financing dominated by financial institutions (banks and insurers) into a broader, more liquid, and increasingly evergreen asset class. Beyond higher trading volumes, the key signal is the maturation of the preferred equity market itself. As liquidity deepens, these instruments become increasingly more efficient not only on coupon and issuer quality, but also on secondary-market depth, relative value, and the durability of investor demand. This evolution is beginning to extend beyond crypto: in June, Alphabet launched its first convertible preferred offering as part of an $80B + equity raise to fund AI infrastructure, while Super Micro Computer announced a $3.75B convertible preferred issuance within a $7B capital raise for AI expansion, underscoring the growing role of preferred equity as a scalable financing instrument across sectors.