Greythorn’s Annual Crypto Review: Top Insights and Emerging Market Trends
Greythorn Asset Management
Melbourne-based asset management firm focused primarily on Tech | Web3 | Crypto | Blockchain | DYOR/NFA
Bitcoin has finally crossed $100K — a number that’s more than just a price tag. It reflects Bitcoin’s growing place in global finance and the conviction that’s driven it to this level. For long-time believers, it’s a moment of validation. For skeptics, it’s a shift that’s hard to dismiss.
2024 has been a pivotal year for crypto. The approval of spot Bitcoin and Ethereum ETFs, economic recovery, and major blockchain breakthroughs have fueled fresh momentum. Despite macro uncertainty, Bitcoin’s fourth halving acted as a key catalyst, driving a rally that continues to put crypto on the global stage.
At Greythorn Asset Management, early positions in Bitcoin and Solana — along with a sharp eye for emerging trends — have kept us ahead of the curve. Our strategy combines sharp foresight with decisive action, keeping us ahead in fast-moving markets.
This year, we’ve doubled down on sharing institutional insights and supporting projects that reflect blockchain’s transformative potential. Looking ahead, our focus remains on unlocking value through thoughtful, forward-driven investments.
The Evolution of Narratives
The year kicked off with cautious optimism, fueled by Bitcoin’s recovery and a renewed focus on utility-driven projects. Bitcoin increased its dominance, Ethereum made strides in scalability, and ecosystems like Solana gained momentum. Innovations in decentralized storage and modular blockchain design showcased the potential of projects like Arweave and Celestia.
Real-world asset (RWA) tokenization became a key theme, with traditional finance moving deeper into blockchain integration. Big names like JPMorgan’s Onyx showed how innovation and regulation can align. Meanwhile, DeFi saw liquid staking derivatives rise to prominence, offering users a balance of yield and liquidity while reshaping the sector’s narrative.
AI also took center stage, driving fresh blockchain applications and widening the industry's scope. During quieter market phases, memecoin mania and airdrop trends kept engagement high, reflecting crypto’s unique ability to merge speculation with innovation. Institutional support from firms like BlackRock and Fidelity added legitimacy to the space, balancing innovation with growing regulatory pressure.
As the year draws to a close, attention has shifted back to so-called "dino coins" like $XRP, $ADA, and $XLM. These large-cap assets, once seen as past their prime, delivered surprising rallies, outperforming expectations and reigniting interest. Their resurgence highlights crypto’s cyclical nature and the importance of staying alert to evolving narratives.
Some Key Events of 2024
2024 was a defining year for crypto. From milestones like Bitcoin's $100k breakout to major breakthroughs in AI, RWA tokenization, and blockchain scalability, this year reinforced the industry’s evolution.
2024: The Year of Transformative Growth
Greythorn’s success in 2024 comes down to spotting growth-driving narratives early and acting with conviction. By identifying emerging trends ahead of the crowd, we stay ahead of the market and seize opportunities that others may have overlooked. Our early moves on $BTC and $SOL reflect this forward-thinking approach and our commitment to long-term value creation.
Bitcoin
Bitcoin has always been a core part of our strategy at Greythorn. During the bear market, we doubled down, backing Bitcoin’s resilience as inflation pressures rose and institutional interest grew. Long before the halving and ETF approvals, we had conviction in Bitcoin’s role as a transformative force in global finance.
Solana
We recognized Solana’s potential early, seeing it as more than just another Layer 1 blockchain. Its speed, scalability, and growing retail adoption made it a clear standout. We took action early, making it one of our core holdings. That decision paid off in 2024, with Solana becoming one of our top performers. By aligning our strategy with the expansion of Solana’s ecosystem, we stayed ahead of one of the most significant growth stories in the space.
Our approach doesn’t stop at Bitcoin and Solana. We’ve stayed ahead of the curve on key industry shifts, like the rise of real-world asset (RWA) tokenization and the growing role of artificial intelligence (AI) in blockchain. Spotting these trends early and backing projects at the right time has been a defining part of our success.
Tokenization of Real-World Assets
Greythorn anticipated the rise of RWA tokenization well before it became an obvious multi-trillion-dollar opportunity. By studying projects such as Ondo, IX Swap, and Maple Finance early on, the firm has demonstrated a deep understanding of this trend, which is reshaping asset accessibility for institutions and retail investors alike.
Artificial Intelligence
In 2023 alone, over $25 billion was invested in AI—a fivefold increase from the prior year. Greythorn’s research into projects like Bittensor, Virtuals and Spectral highlights the firm’s belief in AI as a key driver of economic transformation. With AI applications moving beyond tools to autonomous systems, Greythorn’s focus underscores its commitment to capturing growth in this space.
Identifying Emerging Narratives
Our ability to stay ahead of the market is rooted in our thoughtful approach to identifying early trends. Their process includes:
By maintaining this forward-looking perspective and consistently focusing on high-potential narratives, Greythorn continues to solidify its position as a research-driven leader in crypto investment.
Investment Highlights
Greythorn’s investments in Sanctum and Drift showcase the firm’s ability to identify high-potential opportunities early and capitalize on them. By leveraging a research-driven approach, Greythorn acted decisively on emerging trends in liquid staking and decentralized derivatives trading, securing significant returns in the process.
Sanctum ($CLOUD): Unlocking Liquid Staking Potential on Solana
Sanctum was a key example of Greythorn’s foresight into the transformative potential of liquid staking within PoS networks. Liquid staking addressed critical limitations of traditional staking by issuing Liquid Staking Tokens (LSTs), enabling users to unlock the value of their staked assets while earning rewards. These tokens provided flexibility for trading, integration with DeFi, and collateralization.
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Drift ($DRIFT): Capturing DeFi Derivatives Growth
Drift highlighted Greythorn’s ability to foresee the growing importance of decentralized derivatives exchanges (DEXs) within the broader DeFi landscape. In early 2024, DeFi’s TVL rebounded sharply, climbing from $54.4 billion to $81 billion, with derivatives DEXs standing out as a dominant segment. Liquidity network effects and superior trading conditions compared to centralized exchanges made derivatives DEXs a “winner-take-most” market.
Institutional adoption also fueled this growth. By mid-2024, nearly half of U.S. hedge funds had invested in crypto, with 60% actively trading derivatives—up significantly from the previous year. These developments aligned with Drift’s expansion, including the launch of its innovative BET prediction market. Recognizing Solana’s rapid adoption and Drift’s unique positioning, Greythorn capitalized on the opportunity, delivering strong returns for the fund.
Methodology and Research Approach
A well-defined, top-down approach is critical for making clear and unbiased investment decisions. Our research process begins with a broad focus on market opportunities, technology, and utility before narrowing down to specifics like adoption metrics, growth potential, team quality, partnerships, tokenomics, and risks.
Broad Market Analysis
The team starts by evaluating macro trends across the crypto landscape. They focus on identifying sectors with strong growth potential and emerging technologies that align with long-term market opportunities. This phase sets the stage for deeper analysis of specific projects.
Focus on Key Drivers
The real value lies in identifying the factors that drive success. These include:
Narratives and Inflection Points
Strong narratives are tied to adoption inflection points—moments when forward-looking adoption surpasses targets, leading to exponential growth. These “hockey-stick” trajectories often attract the most attention and capital, creating outsized opportunities for early movers. For example, projects like Pendle Finance (PENDLE) demonstrated how rapid TVL growth created a reflexive effect: rising prices drove liquidity, which in turn boosted valuations further.
Balancing Fundamentals and Memetics
In today’s crypto market, the most successful projects balance utility with memetic appeal. First-mover advantage is crucial for building brand recognition, trust, and network effects, but true value lies in a project’s ability to deliver measurable benefits to token holders.
Stacking Growth Levers
Growth is rarely the result of a single breakthrough. Instead, it’s about stacking multiple growth levers over time. A strong narrative, rapid adoption, and an engaged community all work together to propel projects forward.
A Year of Collective Progress and Unity
2024 has also been a year of dedication and collaboration at Greythorn Asset Management. We’ve focused on keeping our community informed by sharing regular market updates and research, offering clear insights into the projects we’re tracking and the narratives shaping the industry. From highlighting emerging opportunities to providing in-depth analysis, our goal has been to empower our community with valuable knowledge.
Our commitment has extended beyond research and insights. We’ve opened our office space to spark collaboration, creating a welcoming environment where ideas and opportunities emerge. Regular events have brought together members of the Australian crypto community, providing startups with a platform to showcase their innovations while sparking meaningful discussions about blockchain’s future.
These events have been crafted to connect people, combining insightful talks, networking opportunities, and a relaxed atmosphere where industry enthusiasts come together over shared ideas, drinks, and pizza. Through collaboration, knowledge sharing, and support for innovation, we’ve built stronger community ties and reinforced our commitment to shaping crypto’s future.
Looking ahead, we remain focused on driving progress and ensuring our community grows and thrives with us.
2025: The Year Altcoins Step Back Into the Spotlight
As we head into 2025, the crypto market feels ready for a shift. A pro-crypto stance in the U.S. and signs of easing from global central banks could finally bring some life back to altcoins.
Altseasons tend to happen when Bitcoin dominance (BTC.D) drops, allowing funds to flow into the broader market. Over the past two years, BTC.D has surged to around 60%, leaving altcoins struggling to keep up. But with improving liquidity and investors warming up to riskier assets, the tide could turn.
This isn’t just about money moving out of Bitcoin into altcoins. It’s about new opportunities catching attention. Fresh projects with novel ideas and untapped potential often attract the most interest, especially as they gain recognition and trust.
If the conditions align, 2025 might mark a fresh chapter for altcoins, one driven by curiosity, innovation, and a growing appetite for higher risk and reward.
However, two clear trends are also shaping the market: a flood of active tokens and smaller gains with each cycle. As the number of cryptocurrencies hits record levels, competition is fiercer than ever, making it harder for altcoins to deliver the explosive returns seen in the past.
While the 2021 bull run revolved around themes like the explosive growth of alternative Layer 1s, the DeFi boom, and the rise of the metaverse, the 2025 cycle appears to be charting a different course. This time, the focus is on the viral appeal of memecoins, the disruptive potential of decentralized AI, and the tangible impact of tokenized real-world assets (RWA).
At Greythorn Asset Management, we remain committed to tracking these evolving narratives and staying ahead of market shifts. Our focus is on identifying key opportunities and offering institutional-grade insights to help navigate the rapidly changing crypto landscape. Follow us as we continue to analyze, adapt, and invest in the trends shaping the future of crypto.
Disclaimer
This presentation has been prepared by Greythorn Asset Management Pty Ltd (ABN 96 621 995 659) (Greythorn). The information in this presentation should be regarded as general information only rather than investment advice and financial advice. It is not an advertisement nor is it a solicitation or an offer to buy or sell any financial instruments or to participate in any particular trading strategy. In preparing this document Greythorn did not take into account the investment objectives, financial circumstance or particular needs of any recipient who receives or reads it. Before making any investment decisions, recipients of this presentation should consider their own personal circumstances and seek professional advice from their accountant, lawyer or other professional adviser. This presentation contains statements, opinions, projections, forecasts and other material (forward looking statements), based on various assumptions. Greythorn is not obliged to update the information. Those assumptions may or may not prove to be correct. None of Greythorn, its officers, employees, agents, advisers or any other person named in this presentation makes any representation as to the accuracy or likelihood of fulfilment of any forward looking statements or any of the assumptions upon which they are based. Greythorn and its officers, employees, agents and advisers give no warranty, representation or guarantee as to the accuracy, completeness or reliability of the information contained in this presentation. None of Greythorn and its officers, employees, agents and advisers accept, to the extent permitted by law, responsibility for any loss, claim, damages, costs or expenses arising out of, or in connection with, the information contained in this presentation. This presentation is the property of Greythorn. By receiving this presentation, the recipient agrees to keep its content confidential and agrees not to copy, supply, disseminate or disclose any information in relation to its content without written consent.