As 2025 draws to a close, ether.fi CEO Mike Silagadze is looking to the future, predicting that Ethereum's next phase will be characterized by practical, everyday financial products rather than speculation. In an interview with CoinDesk, Silagadze noted that his company, known for its restaking platform on Ethereum, has expanded its focus to building crypto-native neobanking products that combine yield, self-custody, and on-chain financial services. Silagadze is set to speak at CoinDesk's Consensus Hong Kong conference in February 2026. He described 2025 as a pivotal year for Ethereum, marked by significant institutional onboarding.
While staking within ETFs remains limited, other institutional vehicles, such as digital asset treasuries (DATs), have made rapid progress, with some already deploying into ether.fi. This trend has had a positive impact on the price of ether, which rose from $1,472 in April 2025 to $4,832 during the height of the DAT trend.
Silagadze believes that the growth of the crypto neobank movement will be a key factor in Ethereum's success in 2026. Neobanks, he argues, are better positioned than ETFs to introduce users to on-chain activity and yield, and will play a crucial role in driving sustained adoption. To achieve this, Ethereum must deliver practical utility at scale, focusing on real-world use cases such as tokenized stocks and accessible banking services, rather than relying on speculative or gambling-driven applications.