Most Influential 2025's Honorable Mentions in Crypto and Blockchain
Zcash has seen renewed interest due to the Zashi wallet, which defaults to shielded transactions, emphasizing privacy as a central theme in crypto transactions and regulatory discussions.
The Canton Network was named the tokenization partner for the Depository Trust & Clearing Corporation (DTCC) to mint some U.S. Treasury securities on its platform, with custody managed by the Depository Trust Company, focusing on institutional and regulated transactions.
Kalshi recently raised $1 billion, led by founders Tarek Mansour and Luana Lopes Lara, whose combined net worth exceeds $1 billion. The firm played a pivotal role in a court victory against the CFTC that enabled U.S. political prediction markets. Kalshi is expanding into crypto and powers other platforms including partnerships with Coinbase and Phantom Wallet, with CNN adoption also referenced.
Binance co-CEO Yi He has been elevated to serve alongside Richard Teng, reinforcing leadership influence through Binance Labs, BNB Chain growth, and strategic acquisitions.
Joe Lubin joined the board of SharpLink, an Ethereum treasury firm holding roughly 900,000 ETH. SharpLink plans to deploy about $200 million of ETH to ConsenSys' Layer-2 tool Linea to seek yield.
Zach Abrams, founder of Bridge, notes that stablecoin tooling is maturing as Stripe acquired Bridge in February. Tools like Open Issuance enable platforms to launch bespoke stablecoins.
Polymarket reentered the U.S. market following Kalshi’s court win, which helped open doors for broader prediction-market activity, with Kalshi playing a significant role in powering other platforms.
