US-Iran Strikes Accelerate Onchain Finance Growth

The recent US-Iran strikes had a profound impact on global markets, pushing them into uncharted territory. On Sunday, February 28, President Donald Trump's announcement of the attack at 2:30 am exposed the limitations of traditional markets. Inactive major venues, including US stock and futures markets, foreign exchange, European exchanges, and Asian markets, made way for crypto-based systems that operate around the clock.

Onchain finance took center stage as investors turned to these systems in search of liquidity. Hyperliquid saw significant spikes in volume, particularly in perpetual futures contracts tied to crypto assets and real-world items such as crude oil. Tether's tokenized gold product XAUT recorded over $300 million in 24-hour trading volume, while prediction markets reached new volume highs.

According to Bitwise Chief Investment Officer Matt Hougan, this development has accelerated the growth of onchain finance. In a memo titled 'The Weekend That Changed Finance,' Hougan stated that traditional market participants will no longer have a choice but to join onchain finance. He emphasized that even if they don't, everyone else will.