Crypto may still be known for its wild price swings, but that is not stopping major financial institutions and venture capital firms from doubling down on the industry.

In fact, some of the biggest names in traditional finance are quietly expanding their crypto bets, building infrastructure, launching new investment funds, and positioning themselves for the next phase of digital asset adoption.

One of the clearest signals came this week when Intercontinental Exchange (ICE), the parent company of the New York Stock Exchange, revealed a minority investment in crypto exchange OKX. 

The deal values OKX at roughly $25 billion.

Related: OKX eyes US expansion: 'Vibrant market for crypto entrants,' says top exec

Under the agreement, ICE will license OKX’s spot cryptocurrency price data and use it to launch U.S.-regulated futures contracts.

At the same time, OKX will distribute ICE’s U.S. futures and tokenized equities markets to its global network of more than 120 million users.

ICE will also take a seat on OKX’s board as part of the deal, although the exact size of the investment has not been disclosed.

The move follows ICE's recent crypto-related investment in Polymarket, the world’s largest prediction market.

Together, these steps suggest that traditional financial giants are increasingly positioning themselves within the digital asset ecosystem.

In simple terms, large institutions appear less focused on short-term price swings and more interested in building the long-term financial rails that could support the next wave of crypto adoption.

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Institutional confidence is not limited to traditional finance.

Venture capital firms, particularly those in Silicon Valley, are also continuing to raise large pools of money dedicated to blockchain investments.

Andreessen Horowitz’s crypto division, a16z Crypto, is reportedly raising around $2 billion for its fifth crypto-focused fund, as per a Fortune exclusive. The fundraising is expected to wrap up in the first half of 2026.

The firm has been one of the most active investors in the sector. Its first crypto fund in 2018 raised $300 million, and each subsequent fund grew larger, culminating in a massive $4.5 billion fund in 2022.

While the new fund is smaller than the previous one, sources say the firm is intentionally shortening its fundraising cycle to adapt to how quickly trends evolve in the crypto industry.

Importantly, the upcoming fund will focus entirely on blockchain investments.

TheStreet Roundtable reached out to a16z for a comment and had not received a response by the time of publication.

Related: Andreessen Horowitz raising $3.4 billion with focus on crypto investment

This surge of institutional activity comes at an interesting moment for the market.

Regulatory discussions are gaining momentum in the United States. U.S. President Donald Trump recently signaled support for the Clarity Act, a bill aimed at creating clearer rules for digital assets.

Meanwhile, the industry is also seeing regulatory breakthroughs elsewhere.

OKX rival Kraken recently secured access to the Federal Reserve’s payments system through a limited-purpose banking account, something crypto firms have sought for years. Although the move did bring some pushback from JPMorgan and Bank of America.

Market performance is also showing signs of life. Bitcoin (BTC) was trading at $72,482.29 at press time, up 1.7% over the past 24 hours and back above the $72,000 level for the first time since early February.

However, it is nowhere close to the peak of above $124,000 it reached back in October 2025.

This story was originally published by TheStreet on Mar 5, 2026, where it first appeared in the MARKETS section. Add TheStreet as a Preferred Source by clicking here.