This Disconnect Could Decide the Next Crypto Bull Run

Kam Benbrik, Head of Onchain Research at Bitwise, discusses the divergence between surging blockchain network activity and stagnant token prices. He highlights specific growth stories: Hyperliquid's dominant perps and fee burn, Solana's explosion in tokenized equities, Avalanche's enterprise RWA subnets, and Ethereum's new demand from the Robin Hood chain. The competition is expanding the market, and once investors understand on-chain fundamentals, token prices should catch up. - Blockchain networks like Solana, Hyperliquid, Avalanche, and Ethereum are experiencing strong transaction and revenue growth despite a bear market. - Hyperliquid generated $175M in Q2 2026 fees used to buy and burn HYPE, while Solana's tokenized equity volumes surged 3000x to $3B. - Avalanche is attracting enterprises like FIFA and Progmat with regulated custom subnets focused on real-world asset tokenization. - Ethereum is gaining new demand from the Robin Hood chain, which requires ETH as gas and has already bridged significant supply. - Healthy inter-chain competition is growing the overall addressable market rather than producing a winner-take-all outcome. - Kam expects the price-fundamental divergence to close as more investors recognize on-chain usage, leading to renewed token buying.