In 2025, institutional crypto allocation stopped being about exposure—and started being about structure.
The difference is subtle but fundamental.
Instead of chasing market cycles, large allocators—from crypto-native funds to DAOs and exchanges—began designing portfolios for operational liquidity, onchain rewards, and capital rotation. That shift shows up clearly in the data: stablecoin holdings in large wallets rose meaningfully, native token exposures became more intentional, and Ethereum’s role as a settlement layer only deepened.
Today, P2P.org is publishing a new report: “Stablecoins vs. Native Tokens: Institutional Allocation Trends”
It’s a data-backed look at how the portfolios of institutional actors actually changed this year—built on onchain data, analytics dashboards, and infrastructure trends we observe directly across our network.
This isn’t a market recap. It’s a breakdown of how institutions allocated real capital—and what that says about the future of staking, stablecoins, and infrastructure decisions going into 2026.
Inside the report:
The research draws on multi-chain data, but the patterns are clearest on Ethereum—where stablecoin reserves and native token deployments sit side-by-side in validator-linked portfolios.

Stablecoins are no longer just “dry powder.” They’re tools for capital efficiency, onchain access, and risk-tiering in institutional portfolios.
ETH is no longer just an asset. It’s programmable liquidity, stakable yield, and the infrastructure of reserves.
And P2P.org’s view—as a validator and infrastructure partner across Ethereum and other proof-of-stake networks—is that allocation behaviors are now driven by operational design, not just exposure targets.
This report is designed for crypto funds, asset managers, DAO treasurers, and institutional teams building real onchain portfolios.
[Download the Report] Stablecoins vs. Native Tokens: Institutional Allocation
Whether you're managing staking allocations, designing treasury structure, or evaluating validator partners, this research offers a data-grounded foundation for 2026 strategy.
<p>As on-chain financial infrastructure matures, one pattern is becoming increasingly clear: strong protocols succeed when paired with effective distribution.</p><p>High-quality lending infrastructure already exists. Capital-efficient designs, modular architectures, and professional-grade primitives are now well established. What continues to evolve is how these systems are delivered through fintech applications, neobanks, custodial platforms, exchanges, and wallets in a way that fits modern financial products.</p><p>This is where distribution layers play an important role.</p><p>The P2P.org Stablecoin Earn Widget is one example of this model in practice. It is live on the P2P.org frontend today, where users can access Steakhouse-curated Morpho vaults directly. The same product layer is also designed to be embedded by partners, enabling broader distribution across platforms.</p><h2 id="morpho-as-a-foundation-for-onchain-credit"><strong>Morpho as a foundation for onchain credit</strong></h2><p>Morpho is designed as a core DeFi primitive. Its architecture focuses on capital efficiency and modularity, making it well-suited as the infrastructure for lending and credit strategies that need to scale.</p><p>Rather than operating as a consumer-facing product, Morpho is intentionally built to serve as infrastructure. This allows strategy managers and platforms to compose on top of it, while benefiting from its underlying design.</p><p>In the context of the Stablecoin Earn Widget, Morpho provides the universal lending network that enables these strategies to function. Its role remains consistent: power credit markets at the protocol level, while higher layers focus on strategy design and distribution.</p><h2 id="turning-infrastructure-into-a-product-experience"><strong>Turning infrastructure into a product experience</strong></h2><p>The Stablecoin Earn Widget sits above the protocol layer. Its purpose is not to replace or abstract away the value of infrastructure, but to make it accessible through a controlled product interface.</p><p>Through this structure:</p><ul><li>End users engage with a simple earn experience</li><li>Platforms integrate a single component</li><li>Protocol complexity remains at the infrastructure layer</li></ul><p>This separation allows Morpho to remain focused on its core mission, while strategies and distribution are handled by specialized counterparts.</p><p><strong>Access and Distribution</strong></p><p>In addition to being embeddable by partners, the<a href="https://widget.p2p.org/select?ref=p2p.org"><u> Stablecoin Earn Widget</u></a> is also accessible directly through the P2P.org frontend.</p><p>This allows users to access Steakhouse-curated strategies on Morpho directly via P2P.org, while partners can integrate the same product layer into their own platforms.</p><p>This dual distribution model — direct access via P2P.org and embedded distribution via partners — highlights how protocol infrastructure, strategy curation, and product delivery can scale together.</p><figure class="kg-card kg-image-card"><img src="https://p2p.org/economy/content/images/2026/03/data-src-image-fb2f9ce0-167f-4bb9-9111-661c193b2b29.png" class="kg-image" alt="" loading="lazy" width="1042" height="1508" srcset="https://p2p.org/economy/content/images/size/w600/2026/03/data-src-image-fb2f9ce0-167f-4bb9-9111-661c193b2b29.png 600w, https://p2p.org/economy/content/images/size/w1000/2026/03/data-src-image-fb2f9ce0-167f-4bb9-9111-661c193b2b29.png 1000w, https://p2p.org/economy/content/images/2026/03/data-src-image-fb2f9ce0-167f-4bb9-9111-661c193b2b29.png 1042w" sizes="(min-width: 720px) 720px"></figure><figure class="kg-card kg-image-card kg-card-hascaption"><img src="https://p2p.org/economy/content/images/2026/03/data-src-image-58a80d0b-d3de-47da-86db-6520f01f0d8b.png" class="kg-image" alt="" loading="lazy" width="914" height="476" srcset="https://p2p.org/economy/content/images/size/w600/2026/03/data-src-image-58a80d0b-d3de-47da-86db-6520f01f0d8b.png 600w, https://p2p.org/economy/content/images/2026/03/data-src-image-58a80d0b-d3de-47da-86db-6520f01f0d8b.png 914w" sizes="(min-width: 720px) 720px"><figcaption><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">Note: NRR values shown are illustrative examples for demonstration purposes only.</span></figcaption></figure><p><br><strong>The role of curation</strong></p><p>Between infrastructure and distribution sits curation.</p><p>The strategies available through the widget are curated by Steakhouse, which designs and maintains vaults built on Morpho. Steakhouse applies a structured approach to strategy construction, ensuring that protocol primitives are assembled into coherent, professional-grade products.</p><p>Each layer in the stack has a clear responsibility:</p><ul><li>Morpho provides the lending mechanics</li><li>Steakhouse curates and manages strategies</li><li>P2P.org delivers the distribution layer and interface</li></ul><p>This clarity makes it easier for platforms to offer stablecoin earn functionality without taking on roles outside their core focus.</p><h2 id="distribution-as-an-enabler"><strong>Distribution as an enabler</strong></h2><p>Capital today increasingly sits inside wallets, fintech applications, custodial platforms, and treasury systems. Distribution layers allow protocols like Morpho to reach these environments without operating user-facing products themselves.</p><p>By embedding the Stablecoin Earn Widget, platforms can surface Morpho-based strategies within products that users already trust and use. For Morpho, this expands reach through partners. For platforms, it provides a practical way to offer earn functionality backed by established infrastructure.</p><h2 id="built-on-infrastructure-designed-to-scale"><strong>Built on infrastructure designed to scale</strong></h2><p>The Stablecoin Earn Widget is supported by P2P.org infrastructure securing over $10B across more than 40 networks. This operational foundation supports the reliable delivery of strategies built on Morpho and curated by Steakhouse.</p><p>Importantly, this model does not alter how Morpho functions. It preserves the protocol’s role as infrastructure, while improving how strategies built on it are accessed and distributed.</p><h2 id="a-shared-direction"><strong>A shared direction</strong></h2><p>This collaboration reflects a broader evolution in DeFi:</p><ul><li>Protocols specialize in primitives</li><li>Strategy managers specialize in construction and oversight</li><li>Distribution layers specialize in product delivery</li></ul><p>The Stablecoin Earn Widget illustrates how these roles can work together in production today, with Morpho providing the underlying credit infrastructure.</p><p>As on-chain credit continues to grow, this separation of responsibilities creates clearer paths for adoption across platforms and users.</p><h2 id="integrating-the-stablecoin-earn-widget"><strong>Integrating the Stablecoin Earn Widget</strong></h2><p>For platforms exploring stablecoin earn functionality, the Stablecoin Earn Widget is designed to integrate directly into existing products.</p><p>It allows teams to offer access to curated strategies without managing protocol integrations or strategy design internally. Platforms interested in exploring integration can reach out to the P2P.org team to discuss fit and timelines.</p><p>Book a 20-minute discovery call <a href="https://link.p2p.org/3325c6?ref=p2p.org" rel="noreferrer">here</a>. </p><p>Learn more about the Widget in <a href="https://docs.widget.p2p.org/ ?ref=p2p.org" rel="noreferrer">our docs.</a></p>
from p2p validator
<h2 id="at-a-glance"><strong>At a Glance:</strong></h2><ul><li><strong>Thursday, February 12, 7:00 AM UTC</strong>: AZTEC tokens will become transferable and Uniswap v4 trading pool goes live</li><li><strong>What changes</strong>: Tokens become transferable, public staking opens, price discovery begins</li><li><strong>The opportunity</strong>: The first fully decentralized privacy L2 on Ethereum offers confidential transactions without compromising security</li><li><strong>P2P.org's edge</strong>: Genesis sequencer with 85.2M AZTEC already secured, zero slashing record, institutional infrastructure from day one</li><li><strong>Your options</strong>: Stake solo (requires 200k AZTEC + technical ops) or delegate (P2P.org handles everything)</li><li>Check out our <a href="https://p2p.org/economy/how-to-stake-aztec-with-p2p-org/"><strong><u>Step-by-step staking guide</u></strong></a></li></ul><p>The privacy infrastructure gap is closing. For years, anyone needing confidential blockchain transactions faced an impossible choice: use privacy chains with limited functionality, or use Ethereum and broadcast every transaction detail publicly.</p><p>Thursday changes that equation.</p><p>Aztec's TGE unlocks public participation in Ethereum's first fully decentralized privacy-preserving Layer 2. If you participated in the public auction, your tokens become transferable and stakeable at 7:00 AM UTC. If you're evaluating privacy infrastructure for the first time, here's what matters, and why P2P.org's genesis sequencer position gives delegators an operational advantage competitors can't match.</p><h2 id="what-actually-happens-thursday"><strong>What Actually Happens Thursday</strong></h2><p>Three things unlock simultaneously:</p><p><strong>Tokens move freely</strong>. AZTEC becomes transferable on Ethereum mainnet. Auction participants and early holders can finally move their positions.</p><p><strong>Price discovery begins</strong>. Uniswap v4 pool activates. Pre-TGE private markets established an initial price baseline — public markets determine what happens next.</p><p><strong>Staking opens widely</strong>. Genesis sequencers like P2P.org have been securing the network since launch. TGE removes the barriers keeping everyone else out.</p><h2 id="why-privacy-actually-matters"><strong>Why Privacy Actually Matters</strong></h2><p>Every Ethereum transaction broadcasts everything: wallet addresses, amounts, counterparties, balances. For individuals protecting financial privacy and enterprises managing sensitive operations, this transparency creates real problems.</p><p>Aztec uses zero-knowledge proofs to verify transactions without revealing details. The network confirms correctness without exposing content. Rules get followed, but what gets seen is your choice — Aztec's programmable privacy lets you set your own disclosure level for each transaction, sharing only what you want, with who you want.</p><p><strong>This isn't theoretical</strong>:</p><p>Enterprises need confidential payroll, private M&A activity, and treasury movements that don't telegraph strategy to competitors. Public chains leak competitive intelligence with every transaction.</p><p>Individual users want DeFi positions, trading strategies, and financial activity that stays private, rather than public data for analytics firms to package and sell.</p><p>Developers can finally build applications impossible on transparent chains: confidential voting, private auctions, shielded lending, financial tools that respect user sovereignty.</p><p><strong>The difference with Aztec is control.</strong> On Ethereum today, everything is public — there's no middle ground. Aztec flips this with programmable privacy: using zero-knowledge proofs, you choose exactly what to reveal and to whom. Make a transaction fully private. Make your address selectively visible to counterparties. Disclose specific activity for compliance purposes while keeping everything else confidential.</p><p>Unlike privacy solutions that compromise on decentralization or security, Aztec maintains both. Privacy is native, not bolted on. You get Ethereum's security guarantees with confidential execution, and the power to decide exactly how much of that privacy to use.</p><h2 id="why-p2porgs-genesis-position-matters"><strong>Why P2P.org's Genesis Position Matters</strong></h2><p>We've been live on Aztec since block one. Not evaluating it, not testing it, but actively securing it.</p><p><strong>Current position</strong>: #4 sequencer, 9.3% market share, 85.2M AZTEC locked. Zero slashing incidents across our operational history. This matches our track record across 40+ networks securing $10 billion+ in digital assets.</p><p><strong>What this means for delegators</strong>: Networks are most vulnerable early when validator sets are small and best practices don't exist yet. P2P.org helped establish those practices for Aztec. By Thursday, our infrastructure will have processed thousands of blocks under real-world conditions.</p><p>That operational history can't be faked. Production uptime data, block proposal records, zero slashing across variable network conditions — validators launching after TGE haven't faced these challenges yet.</p><p><strong>Infrastructure that matches the complexity</strong>: Privacy-preserving networks aren't standard validators with different branding. Zero-knowledge proof verification, encrypted state management, confidential transaction processing — most validators haven't built capacity for this. We solved these problems before public access.</p><p>Our infrastructure:</p><ul><li>Geographic redundancy across top-tier data centers</li><li>99.9% uptime, 24/7 monitoring, real-time alerting</li><li>SOC 2 Type II compliant for institutional clients</li><li>Dedicated support for high-value positions</li></ul><p>Whether you're delegating 200,000 AZTEC or 20 million, you get the same institutional infrastructure securing assets for crypto's largest participants.</p><h2 id="how-to-participate"><strong>How to Participate</strong></h2><p></p><h3 id="getting-aztec"><strong>Getting AZTEC</strong></h3><p><strong>Didn't participate in the auction?</strong> AZTEC becomes available through multiple routes from Thursday. Buy on Uniswap v4 starting 7:00 AM UTC, or through centralized exchanges including Coinbase, which has confirmed AZTEC trading support.</p><p><strong>Institutional buyers needing larger positions?</strong> OTC desks will establish markets post-TGE. Standard institutional onboarding applies, including compliance, AML/KYC, and counterparty due diligence.</p><h3 id="understanding-the-staking-model"><strong>Understanding the Staking Model</strong></h3><p>Aztec works like Ethereum's 32 ETH validator model. Each sequencer requires exactly <strong>200,000 AZTEC</strong>.</p><p><strong>Stake 500,000 AZTEC:</strong> Two active sequencers (400k), 100k stays inactive until you add enough for a third</p><p><strong>Stake 180,000 AZTEC:</strong> Entire position inactive until you add 20k more to hit minimum</p><p>This isn't a bug. Its architectural design ensures sequencers meet security requirements.</p><h3 id="solo-vs-delegation"><strong>Solo vs. Delegation</strong></h3><p><strong>Solo staking</strong> means you run everything:</p><ul><li>High-performance hardware meeting Aztec specs</li><li>Reliable network connectivity, low latency</li><li>Technical expertise in zero-knowledge systems</li><li>24/7 monitoring and incident response</li></ul><p>Best for technically sophisticated participants who want direct network contribution and have the infrastructure capacity.</p><p><strong>Delegation</strong> means P2P.org handles operations:</p><ul><li>Hardware, maintenance, security patches</li><li>Performance monitoring and optimization</li><li>Slashing risk mitigation</li><li>Technical troubleshooting</li></ul><p>Makes sense when operational overhead exceeds the value of running infrastructure yourself. Most institutional participants lack specialized zkRollup expertise. Most individual participants can't maintain 24/7 sequencer operations.</p><h3 id="delegate-to-p2porg"><strong>Delegate to P2P.org</strong></h3><p>Visit<a href="https://stake.aztec.network/?ref=p2p.org"> <u>stake.aztec.network</u></a>, connect your wallet, select <strong>P2P.org</strong> from registered providers (<a href="https://stake.aztec.network/providers/41?ref=p2p.org"><u>stake.aztec.network/providers/41</u></a>).</p><p>Approve delegation. Your AZTEC stays in your custody — delegation transfers staking rights, not ownership.</p><p>Rewards begin immediately based on network parameters and our sequencer performance. Monitor via Aztec's dashboard and community-built tools launching post-TGE.</p><p>Looking for a step-by-step guide?</p><div class="kg-card kg-button-card kg-align-center"><a href="https://p2p.org/economy/how-to-stake-aztec-with-p2p-org/" class="kg-btn kg-btn-accent">Full Aztec Staking Guide</a></div><h2 id="what-you-need-to-know-about-slashing"><strong>What You Need to Know About Slashing</strong></h2><p>Aztec penalizes sequencer misbehavior, but intelligently: <strong>slashing only affects the specific 200k AZTEC unit that misbehaved</strong>, not your entire delegation.</p><p>Example: You delegate 500k AZTEC (two sequencers). One gets slashed and becomes inactive. Your second sequencer keeps operating. The remaining 100k (below threshold) stays inactive.</p><p><strong>Critical detail</strong>: You can't "refill" slashed sequencers. That 200k batch must be fully unstaked, then restaked fresh. This incentivizes validator quality, as poor operators face real consequences.</p><p>P2P.org's zero-slashing record across every network we validate reflects standards that minimize this risk. We maintained perfect records during network upgrades, consensus changes, emergency situations across chains from Ethereum to Polkadot to Cosmos.</p><p>The Aztec community is deploying monitoring infrastructure for sequencer uptime, performance metrics, slashing events, and batch activation status. P2P.org provides additional monitoring through our internal systems, with direct institutional support for high-value delegators.</p><h2 id="why-this-matters-now"><strong>Why This Matters Now</strong></h2><p>Privacy chains like Zcash and Monero proved demand for confidential transactions. But neither achieved Ethereum's programmability or DeFi composability. Privacy stayed niche.</p><p>Aztec brings privacy-first design to Ethereum's execution layer while maintaining full decentralization. Not a mixer, not privacy-as-feature, but privacy as foundation.</p><p><strong>For enterprises</strong>: Solves compliance requirements around data minimization and operational security. Public chains broadcasting treasury movements leak competitive intelligence and create negotiation disadvantages.</p><p><strong>For individuals</strong>: Financial privacy without trusting custodians. DeFi positions, trading strategies, economic activity remain yours — not public data for sale.</p><p><strong>For developers</strong>: Unlocks applications impossible on transparent chains. Confidential voting, private auctions, shielded lending. </p><h2 id="what-happens-next"><strong>What Happens Next</strong></h2><p>Aztec moved from research to testnet to mainnet. Thursday it enters the phase where adoption determines everything.</p><p>P2P.org's genesis position puts us at the center. We secured the network before public participation, established best practices under real conditions, and built institutional infrastructure while the ecosystem formed.</p><p>For delegators evaluating providers, this operational history can't be replicated. We processed blocks when the network was vulnerable, maintained uptime during early instability, proved infrastructure under conditions newer validators haven't experienced.</p><p><strong>Institutions</strong>: Our BD team handles custom arrangements, API integration for treasury systems, white-glove onboarding for large delegations.</p><div class="kg-card kg-button-card kg-align-center"><a href="https://link.p2p.org/bdteam?ref=p2p.org" class="kg-btn kg-btn-accent">Connect With Our Team</a></div><p><strong>Individual delegators</strong>: Visit<a href="https://stake.aztec.network/providers/41?ref=p2p.org"> <u>stake.aztec.network/providers/41</u></a> to delegate. </p><p><strong>Need step-by-step guidance?</strong> Our<a href="https://p2p.org/economy/how-to-stake-aztec-with-p2p-org/"> <u>complete staking guide</u></a> covers wallet connection, provider selection, delegation mechanics, and troubleshooting.</p><div class="kg-card kg-button-card kg-align-center"><a href="https://p2p.org/economy/how-to-stake-aztec-with-p2p-org/" class="kg-btn kg-btn-accent">Full Aztec Staking Guide</a></div><p>Privacy infrastructure is moving from niche to necessary. Aztec built it. P2P.org secured it from day one. Thursday, everyone else gets access.</p>
from p2p validator