TLDR
A new Coinbase and EY-Parthenon survey shows most institutional investors intend to increase their crypto exposure rather than cut it.
- Around 73% of surveyed institutions plan to boost digital asset allocations in 2026 and 74% expect crypto prices to rise over the next year.
- Institutions increasingly favor regulated vehicles such as spot ETFs, stablecoins, and tokenized assets, while tightening risk management instead of exiting crypto.
- The key swing factor is regulation, so watch upcoming market structure and stablecoin rules alongside flows into ETFs and other exchange-traded products.
Deep Dive
1. What The Survey Actually Says
A January 2026 survey of 351 institutional investors by Coinbase and EY-Parthenon found that 73% plan to increase digital asset allocations in 2026 and 74% expect crypto prices to be higher in 12 months, despite recent volatility. This was reported by multiple outlets summarizing the same dataset, such as Cointelegraphs coverage of the institutional investor survey.
Respondents include asset managers, hedge funds, banks, VCs, family offices, and asset owners, so this is not just a crypto-native audience. Importantly, only a minority are looking to reduce exposure; most are adjusting how they invest rather than whether they invest.
Large allocators are treating crypto as a permanent asset class, with changes focused on instruments and risk controls instead of abandoning the sector.
2. How Institutions Plan To Get Exposure
The survey shows a clear migration into regulated wrappers. Around two thirds of respondents now access crypto via spot ETFs and similar ETPs, and roughly 80% prefer registered vehicles over direct on-chain holdings.
Use cases are also evolving. About 85% use or plan to use stablecoins for payments and treasury (especially for fast settlement and internal cash management), and around 63% are interested in tokenized real-world assets, expecting tokenization to reshape trading and settlement in coming years. Risk teams are reacting to volatility by emphasizing liquidity, position sizing, and governance, rather than simply cutting allocations.
Flows are likely to concentrate in transparent, regulated products and in infrastructure themes such as stablecoins and tokenization, rather than purely speculative tokens.
3. Why Regulation And Flows Matter Next
The same institutions say regulatory clarity is both the main catalyst and the main obstacle to adding more crypto. Market structure and stablecoin rules in the United States and other major jurisdictions are cited as top priorities.
In parallel, real money is already moving. CoinShares recently reported about $1.06 billion of weekly inflows into digital asset ETPs, with the bulk going into Bitcoin and Ethereum products, supporting the surveys forward-looking intentions.
If regulatory frameworks for market structure and stablecoins progress, ETF and ETP inflows could continue to be a primary transmission channel for institutional demand into crypto prices and liquidity.
Conclusion
Institutions are not stepping away from crypto; they are preparing to scale into it through regulated, risk-controlled channels. For crypto users, the most important signals are not just survey headlines but the combination of ETF and ETP flows, stablecoin and tokenization adoption, and concrete regulatory milestones that either unlock or delay the next wave of institutional allocations.
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