Crypto investors planning for a potential bull market have more options than just buying bitcoin directly. Fidelity's research suggests that crypto-related stocks, tokenization plays, and blockchain infrastructure companies could offer meaningful diversification opportunities for those betting on a new crypto cycle. But these investments come with distinct risks that differ sharply from holding digital assets themselves.

What Are Crypto-Related Stocks, and Why Should You Care?

Crypto-related stocks are shares in companies that mine cryptocurrencies, operate trading platforms, build blockchain infrastructure, or enable digital asset transactions. Unlike buying bitcoin or ethereum directly, these stocks give investors exposure to the crypto ecosystem through traditional equity markets. Some investors have already seen outsized returns; one bitcoin mining company stock climbed over 640% from its 2025 opening price at one point during the year, though it later fell over 56% from those highs. For comparison, bitcoin's highest gain over its yearly opening price in 2025 was roughly 35%.

The appeal is straightforward: if you believe in crypto's long-term growth but want to diversify beyond holding digital assets directly, crypto stocks offer another avenue.

"Crypto-related stocks can be an effective vehicle to participate in secular growth opportunities of the crypto asset class," explained Coby Powers, a crypto analyst with Fidelity.

Coby Powers, Crypto Analyst at Fidelity

Which Sectors Are Worth Watching in the Crypto Stock Space?

The crypto-related stock landscape divides into several distinct sectors, each with different growth drivers and risk profiles:

• Crypto Exchanges and Investment Platforms: Companies that enable customers to buy, sell, store, and transfer digital assets. Many are now offering tokenized stocks, which are digital representations of shares in publicly traded companies that can be traded 24/7 on a blockchain.
• Stablecoins and Payments: Companies building blockchain-based financial transaction solutions, including stablecoin issuers and platforms that enable stablecoin transactions. The stablecoin market has grown substantially, reaching approximately $315 billion in total market capitalization as of March 31, 2026, a 53% increase from early 2025.
• Crypto Miners: Companies that mine cryptocurrencies, primarily bitcoin, through their own data centers and mining infrastructure. Many are diversifying into artificial intelligence (AI) services since data centers serve multiple industries.
• Blockchain Infrastructure: Companies building hardware like graphics processing units (GPUs) and mining equipment, or software including cybersecurity and IT solutions that power blockchain operations.

An emerging theme gaining attention is tokenization, where assets are represented and traded on a blockchain.

"Tokenization is likely the next major technology adoption trend in crypto, so leaders in the theme could have a stronger chance of performing well in a new bull market," noted Powers.

Coby Powers, Crypto Analyst at Fidelity

Crypto exchanges, traditional investment platforms, and stablecoin-related companies fit this theme best, particularly those already offering tokenized stocks to customers.

What Makes Crypto Stocks Riskier Than Holding Digital Assets Directly?

While crypto-related stocks can outperform spot crypto during bull markets, they carry unique risks that investors should understand before committing capital. The volatility can be extreme. One bitcoin mining stock that outperformed bitcoin in 2025 dropped over 89% when bitcoin declined in October, whereas bitcoin itself fell 52% during the same period.

Beyond market volatility, crypto stocks face company-specific challenges.

"Crypto-related stocks can be extremely volatile, and risk underperforming the market materially if bought at the wrong time of a market cycle, or if the underlying business is weak competitively," warned Powers.

Coby Powers, Crypto Analyst at Fidelity

These stocks can also trade at a premium or discount relative to the value of their underlying assets, and they may face regulatory restrictions that affect their business models.

Perhaps most importantly, crypto stocks do not trade 24/7 like digital assets do. If crypto makes a significant price move over the weekend, investors cannot take profits or cut losses on their stock positions until the market opens on Monday morning. Some crypto stocks can also trade like penny stocks, dropping substantially during bear markets and never recovering their value.

How to Evaluate Crypto Stocks for Your Portfolio

• Assess Market Timing: Consider where you believe we are in the crypto cycle. If you expect a bull market to begin around November 2026, as some analysts predict based on bitcoin's historical 4-year cycles, timing your entry matters significantly for stock performance.
• Research Business Quality: Examine the underlying company's competitive position, management quality, and diversification strategy. Mining companies that have expanded into AI services, for example, may have more stable revenue streams than those dependent solely on crypto mining.
• Monitor Regulatory Developments: Stay informed about legislation affecting crypto and blockchain companies. Recent crypto-friendly legislation like the CLARITY Act could provide tailwinds for certain sectors, particularly stablecoin-related businesses.
• Compare to Spot Crypto and ETFs: For most investors, buying and holding bitcoin directly or investing in digital asset exchange-traded funds (ETFs) may still be preferable due to lower company-specific risk and simpler tax treatment.

Fidelity's analysis suggests that while crypto-related stocks can offer meaningful diversification and potentially outsized returns during bull markets, they require more active research and carry higher volatility than holding digital assets directly. Investors should carefully evaluate their risk tolerance and investment timeline before allocating capital to individual crypto stocks.