Summary
- Crypto’s wave of closures is exposing projects that raised too much money at unrealistic valuations without building sustainable revenue, Kirkley stated.
- Token-based governance and fundraising incentives compounded the problem by making it harder for projects to pivot and rewarding overly optimistic narratives.
- The shakeout comes as bitcoin approaches a potentially critical support zone, but Kirkley says governments are increasingly embracing blockchain infrastructure, just not the decentralized future crypto envisioned.
Crypto’s accelerating wave of shutdowns is less a mystery than the delayed consequence of how the industry funded itself during the boom years, as reported by Ryan Kirkley, CEO of Global Settlement Network.
More than 100 crypto projects have shut down, filed for bankruptcy or effectively disappeared in 2026, as reported by RootData figures cited by CoinDesk, as falling altcoin prices, depleted token treasuries and scarce venture funding expose businesses without sustainable economics.
Kirkley argues many of those failures were effectively baked in during the 2020-21 fundraising frenzy.
Galaxy Research stated venture investors deployed about $4 billion across 355 crypto and blockchain deals in the first quarter of 2026. This was roughly half the capital invested in the fourth quarter 2025, although the number of deals fell only 16%, indicating the decline was largely due to fewer mega-rounds.
Global Settlement Network (GSN) is a blockchain infrastructure company building settlement rails for banks, governments and other regulated financial institutions. Its technology is designed to support the issuance of digital currencies, including stablecoins and central bank digital currencies, the settlement of tokenized assets and cross-border payments, with compliance and interoperability built into the network.
Too much money, too little revenue
“If you raise at too high a valuation, you guarantee yourself a negative outcome,” Kirkley told CoinDesk in an interview.
