Alisa Davidson
Revealed: October 08, 2025 at 8:00 am Up to date: October 08, 2025 at 9:18 am
Edited and fact-checked:
October 08, 2025 at 8:00 am
In Transient
On the Hack Seasons Convention in Singapore, Arthur Hayes highlighted stablecoins and DEXs as key drivers of crypto progress, whereas discussing different fundraising, market liquidity, and danger administration for the following wave of capital formation.
Initially of October, Singapore hosted the Hack Seasons Convention, which introduced collectively a worldwide viewers of technologists, buyers, and innovators to look at the evolving panorama of Web3. One of many occasion’s most notable classes was the hearth chat titled “From Liquidity to Perps: How Macro Flows, Stablecoins and DATs Are Rewiring Onchain Markets.” The dialogue was moderated by Ciara Solar, Founder and Managing Associate of C²Ventures, and featured Arthur Hayes, Chief Funding Officer at Maelstrom.
The dialog opened with Arthur Hayes providing insights from his forthcoming essay titled “The Good, The Dangerous, and The Ugly.” He defined that the present market atmosphere stays bullish, with many individuals cashing in on ongoing developments. Opposite to the broadly held perception in a four-year cryptocurrency cycle, Arthur Hayes argued that financial enlargement will persist, suggesting that the market is now coming into the center section of a broader bull run.
Ciara Solar famous Arthur Hayes’s frequent emphasis on the function of US greenback liquidity in shaping the cryptocurrency market and requested for his outlook on financial coverage over the following six to 12 months. The professional defined that based mostly on statements from political figures, together with Donald Trump and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, there seems to be a transparent intention to extend cash printing below the banner of “revitalizing American trade.” Whether or not by means of the Federal Reserve or the broader banking system, this strategy would probably result in an enlargement of credit score. Arthur Hayes added that as Donald Trump positive aspects larger affect over financial coverage, this acceleration in US greenback creation can be extremely helpful for cryptocurrency markets.
The dialogue then turned to stablecoins, which Ciara Solar described as one of the necessary use circumstances in cryptocurrencies. Arthur Hayes shared his view that whereas stablecoins at the moment operate as digital representations of the US greenback, their function in international funds continues to evolve. He noticed that customers in rising markets more and more favor dollar-pegged stablecoins similar to Tether as a result of they supply entry to a much less inflationary foreign money and to US-denominated monetary devices like debt and equities. In lots of nations, native cost methods already function effectively, but shoppers nonetheless select stablecoins for his or her stability and international accessibility. Arthur Hayes predicted that the stablecoin sector will proceed increasing, with the vast majority of new issuances remaining dollar-based and the main issuers probably incomes above-average income.
Ciara Solar additionally talked about that firms similar to Visa and PayPal are experimenting with cryptocurrency cost options that might speed up mainstream adoption. Arthur Hayes commented that enormous firms have a tendency to maneuver slowly, making it troublesome to forecast when such initiatives may meaningfully scale.
Perpetual DEX Wars And The Future Of Crypto Liquidity: Market Competitors, Tokenomics, And Dangers
The dialog then shifted to the rise of decentralized perpetual exchanges (DEXs), which have gained traction over the previous yr. Arthur Hayes famous that the idea itself shouldn’t be new, referencing earlier platforms like dYdX, which pioneered permissionless buying and selling and on-chain derivatives. Nonetheless, he identified that dYdX’s token mannequin did not reward holders instantly, as buying and selling charges didn’t translate into tokenholder returns. In distinction, newer platforms similar to Hyperliquid allocate the vast majority of their income—round 97%—towards token buybacks, aligning incentives between merchants and the protocol. This strategy has galvanized group help and intensified competitors throughout the market. In line with Arthur Hayes, this dynamic has triggered what he termed “perpetual DEX wars,” with main centralized exchanges (CEXs) now launching their very own decentralized buying and selling merchandise. Consequently, charges throughout the sector are prone to compress towards zero, forcing exchanges to rethink their enterprise fashions to take care of profitability.
Arthur Hayes added that CEXs will proceed to play a job, notably for institutional individuals similar to pension funds and banks which can be restricted from buying and selling on decentralized platforms. Nonetheless, for retail merchants looking for high-leverage merchandise with international accessibility, DEXs provide clear benefits. This, he defined, is why CEXs view decentralized perpetuals as a critical aggressive menace to their retail enterprise fashions—as soon as merchants migrate to on-chain options, liquidity suppliers and market makers are inclined to observe, probably leaving centralized venues with diminished exercise.
The dialogue additionally addressed the rising variety of Digital Asset Tokenization (DAT) firms that goal to offer further layers of market liquidity. Arthur Hayes expressed skepticism in regards to the long-term viability of many such ventures, suggesting that just a few—similar to MicroStrategy—are prone to endure, whereas most will wrestle to draw significant buying and selling quantity. He additional noticed that many altcoins face comparable challenges as a result of restricted liquidity and the problem of scaling token choices to sustainable ranges.
Arthur Hayes concluded by figuring out a key danger issue for the DAT sector: the construction and leverage of tokenized choices. If issuers rely too closely on leveraged merchandise or complicated monetary phrases, they might set off cascading liquidations and compelled unwinds throughout market stress. Whereas such volatility might create alternatives for merchants, he famous that it may additionally go away retail buyers unsure in regards to the true worth of the property they maintain.
Arthur Hayes On Funding Self-discipline And The Subsequent Wave Of Capital Formation In Crypto
The dialog then turned to danger administration, described as the inspiration of the monetary trade. Arthur Hayes outlined a number of methods and hedging practices used inside his fund, emphasizing the significance of sustaining self-discipline in place sizing. He defined that he by no means takes a place bigger than what he’s ready to lose and that almost all of his portfolio is held in Bitcoin and Ethereum. Discussing early-stage initiatives, he famous that his fund maintains strict higher limits on funding quantities, no matter how promising a mission might seem.
The dialogue then shifted towards figuring out probably the most promising narratives for the following three to 5 years. The speaker pointed to stablecoins because the strongest progress alternative, predicting that their whole circulating provide might attain a number of trillion {dollars}. He expressed confidence that Ethena would emerge because the second-largest issuer behind Tether, probably surpassing Circle. As tens of millions of individuals start holding stablecoins, he noticed, demand to spend and make the most of them will develop. On this context, he referenced EtherFi, a mission enabling customers to create self-custodial wallets and spend stablecoins wherever Visa is accepted globally. Past spending, he famous that lending and buying and selling stablecoins would turn out to be main markets, alongside ongoing competitors within the perpetual DEX sector. Arthur Hayes characterised the stablecoin ecosystem as one of the highly effective rising developments, additional strengthened by constructive developments in US coverage.
Discussing Maelstrom’s funding focus, Arthur Hayes highlighted the agency’s curiosity in serving to small and medium-sized companies combine stablecoin funds. Many such enterprises, he famous, nonetheless have to handle obligations similar to taxes and insurance coverage, but lack the technical experience to implement blockchain-based cost methods. Maelstrom is subsequently backing firms that simplify stablecoin cost adoption for companies—a sector he expects to see quick competitors and progress.
The dialog then moved to the state of cryptocurrency enterprise capital. Ciara Solar noticed that many conventional cryptocurrency VC companies seem like struggling, citing knowledge that implies a decline in efficiency. Arthur Hayes defined that almost all VCs underperform towards benchmark property and that the standard enterprise mannequin shouldn’t be well-suited to token investing. Giant funds typically discover it troublesome to deploy substantial capital effectively as a result of promising initiatives usually don’t search multimillion-dollar investments from a single supply.
He additional mentioned different fundraising approaches for blockchain initiatives, noting that many now desire token-based participation mechanisms, ICOs, or group distributions, fairly than relying solely on enterprise capital.
Addressing token technology occasions (TGEs) and trade listings, Arthur Hayes questioned the sustainability of the present listing-focused mannequin. He argued that the energy of a mission mustn’t depend upon being listed on a significant trade and that high quality initiatives ought to prioritize constructing their ecosystems fairly than looking for short-term value appreciation. Founders, he prompt, are more and more realizing that trade listings don’t assure token value progress if the underlying tokenomics are weak. As an alternative, he suggested that initiatives ought to reward energetic individuals and contributors inside their ecosystems fairly than exchanges themselves.
The session concluded with a dialogue on the significance of liquidity and market making for brand spanking new initiatives. Arthur Hayes emphasised that well-structured market help is essential for long-term stability and inspired founders to give attention to sustainable worth creation and accountable ecosystem progress.
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About The Writer
Alisa, a devoted journalist on the MPost, focuses on cryptocurrency, zero-knowledge proofs, investments, and the expansive realm of Web3. With a eager eye for rising developments and applied sciences, she delivers complete protection to tell and have interaction readers within the ever-evolving panorama of digital finance.
Extra articles
Alisa, a devoted journalist on the MPost, focuses on cryptocurrency, zero-knowledge proofs, investments, and the expansive realm of Web3. With a eager eye for rising developments and applied sciences, she delivers complete protection to tell and have interaction readers within the ever-evolving panorama of digital finance.
Extra articles
