Swiss bank Sygnum expects a “new altcoin boom” with the possible start in the second quarter of 2025. This ambitious projection assumes a positive trajectory of further advances in the regulatory environment for digital assets. Aside from the L2 networks, Sygnum’s analysis found that blockchain innovations are building growth momentum in other key areas as well.

>The bank's Q2 2025 investment outlook suggests that "drastically improved" regulations for crypto use cases could be a catalyst for broader adoption. The report equally explains the recent memecoin craze and its effect on the wider market.

Regulatory Improvements and Market Dynamics

Sygnum is optimistic that further regulatory advancements — especially in the U.S. — would greatly enhance bullish crypto momentum. The bank noted some recent developments, including President Donald Trump’s establishment of a Digital Asset Stockpile. They think this action has the potential to dramatically increase crypto adoption.

Sygnum underlined the mega-trend of the market’s rising focus on economic value, which is bound to increase competition. This competition, Sygnum believes, must result in the development of superior products, inevitably benefiting consumers.

"none of the positive developments have been priced in" - Sygnum

Layer-2 Networks and Blockchain Innovation

The layer-2 networks’ potential was recently highlighted in Sygnum’s layer-2 investment report, which featured Base. According to the bank, Base now ranks first in daily transactions, throughput and total value locked. Sygnum Bitcoin blames the shortcomings of the Bitcoin blockchain, which is why high-performance blockchains are stepping in to do the job.

In addition, Sygnum pointed out some of the more positive and pioneering approaches in the blockchain industry. Berachain’s approach of incentivizing validators to offer liquidity to DeFi applications was mentioned as one of the exciting aspects. Perhaps the most intriguing benefit, though, was Sonic’s approach of rewarding developers for attracting—and more importantly—retaining users. Sygnum pointed out the benefits of Toncoin’s relationship with Telegram. This integration unlocks the potential of a 1 billion person user base.

Memecoin Market and Shifting Narratives

In a statement, Sygnum admitted that recent price drops have been “swift”. They noted that memecoins nonetheless ruled the crypto narrative through the first quarter of 2025. During this period, the bank pointed to memecoin mania on some blockchains. This boost resulted in all-time record highs for user engagement and revenue. According to Sygnum, this rush to memecoins saw an equally swift reversal as the memecoin market started losing steam.