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Bitcoin could get a major lift next year if the U.S. government decides to add to its Strategic Bitcoin Reserve.
Ethereum's dominance in decentralized finance (DeFi) has made it a leader in areas ranging from stablecoins to asset tokenization.
Bittensor is a high-risk, high-upside AI coin with a limited lifetime supply of just 21 million coins.
Heading into 2026, crypto investors have plenty of reasons to be nervous. Across the board, top cryptocurrencies are down anywhere from 10% to 50% for the year.
With that in mind, I've put together a list of three cryptocurrencies that should hold up best in 2026. In a best-case scenario, these cryptocurrencies could absolutely soar in value next year, driven by strong underlying fundamentals.
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Image source: Getty Images.
My top pick is Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC), which continues to be the market bellwether. As Bitcoin goes, so goes the rest of the crypto market. That's because Bitcoin still accounts for a whopping 60% of the value of the entire crypto market.
There's plenty to like about Bitcoin heading into 2026. For one, the pace of institutional adoption of Bitcoin continues to build. It's not just big institutional investors that are allocating a portion of their portfolios to Bitcoin. Corporations are now adding Bitcoin to their balance sheets, led by Bitcoin treasury companies that are scooping up the world's top cryptocurrency as fast as they can.
Even better, the U.S. government has also embraced Bitcoin. 2025 saw the creation of the Strategic Bitcoin Reserve, and I'm convinced that things could accelerate even faster in 2026. The Trump administration has hinted over and over again that it is keeping a close eye on the price of Bitcoin, given its new status as a "strategic asset."
If the price of Bitcoin begins to weaken next year, I'm convinced that the Treasury Department will find a "budget-neutral" way to load up on Bitcoin that doesn't involve taxpayer dollars. If sovereign nations around the world follow suit, that could lead to a major uptick in the price of Bitcoin.
What makes Ethereum (CRYPTO: ETH) so attractive as a potential investment target in 2026 is its highly diversified blockchain ecosystem. I've always viewed Ethereum as a sort of crypto conglomerate that has its hands in every important niche of the blockchain and crypto world.
Arguably, the most important of these niches is decentralized finance (DeFi). Ethereum remains a powerhouse in this area, and stands head and shoulders above other Layer-1 blockchain networks as the preferred blockchain of Wall Street.
In 2026, if Wall Street banks are going to embrace blockchain technology, then they are likely to embrace Ethereum as well. With that in mind, two major fintech trends could help to give Ethereum a major lift next year.
One of these is the extraordinary growth in stablecoins. These are digital currencies that are pegged 1:1 to the U.S. dollar. As such, they are really just "digital dollars" that can be deployed across various blockchains and different DeFi protocols.
The other major trend is real-world asset (RWA) tokenization. This refers to the transformation of real-world assets such as stocks and bonds into digital assets that live on the blockchain. This is potentially a multi-trillion-dollar market opportunity, and Ethereum stands out as the one blockchain where these digital assets are going to be actively managed and traded.
My final pick is Bittensor (CRYPTO: TAO), which became the highest market cap AI coin in 2025. Plain and simple, an investment in Bittensor is a bet on the intersection of blockchain technology and artificial intelligence.
Note that I've used the word "bet" here. That's exactly what it is. Bittensor is down 50% in 2025, and it's not a slam dunk by any means that it will continue to be the top AI coin in 2026.
Image source: Getty Images.
However, there's one feature of Bittensor that has my attention: a maximum lifetime supply of 21 million coins. Long-time crypto investors will immediately recognize the significance of that number: It's the exact same lifetime coin supply as that of Bitcoin.
Thus, if you buy into the scarcity argument as a big reason to invest in Bitcoin, then you need to buy into the same argument for Bittensor. By way of comparison, other top AI coins have supplies that are measured in the billions.
Just keep in mind: There are no guarantees for crypto investors headed into 2026. Just take a look back at this year. Wasn't this the year that Bitcoin was supposed to double in value, buoyed by all the pro-crypto talk coming out of the Trump administration? Instead, Bitcoin is down 6% for the year, disappointing crypto investors everywhere.
As a result, I'm avoiding speculative altcoins and ultra-cheap meme coins next year. I'm sticking to blue-chip names like Bitcoin and Ethereum, while dabbling in one area -- artificial intelligence -- that is almost unanimously viewed as one of the fastest-growing sectors of the tech industry. Doing so should provide the optimal mix of upside potential and downside protection for any crypto portfolio.
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Dominic Basulto has positions in Bitcoin and Ethereum. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Bitcoin, Bittensor, and Ethereum. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
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