Avalanche, Morpho Join Grayscale Top 20 as Lido, Optimism Exit

Grayscale Research has updated its Top 20 Assets list for the third quarter of 2025, highlighting significant changes in the digital asset market. Avalanche (AVAX) and Morpho (MORPHO) have been added to the list, while Lido DAO (LDO) and Optimism (OP) have been removed. This update reflects the dynamic nature of the crypto market, where assets can quickly rise or fall based on various factors, including on-chain activity, technological advancements, and market sentiment.

Avalanche (AVAX) has been included in the Top 20 list due to its increasing on-chain transaction activity. Avalanche is a well-known Smart Contract Platform blockchain, currently ranking sixth in its sector by market capitalization. The recent increase in activity, potentially driven by the onboarding of MapleStory and related stablecoin transactions, suggests that Avalanche is gaining traction in the competitive Smart Contract Platforms sector. This organic adoption growth is a positive indicator for Avalanche's competitive position and may support its native AVAX token.

Morpho (MORPHO) has also been included in the Top 20 list due to its significant growth in the decentralized lending sector. Morpho is an overcollateralized decentralized lending protocol that features isolated lending pools, allowing users to lock assets in customizable vaults. The protocol has seen a substantial increase in fee revenue and Total Value Locked (TVL), making it the second-largest lending application by this metric. Morpho's recent announcement of Morpho V2, designed to bring decentralized finance (DeFi) to traditional financial institutions, further positions it as a key player in the on-chain lending space.

The removal of Lido DAO (LDO) and Optimism (OP) from the Top 20 list is noteworthy. Lido DAO is a leading liquid staking protocol, while Optimism is a prominent Layer 2 solution for Ethereum. However, both projects face challenges that have led to their exclusion from the list. Lido DAO may face fee competition from centralized staking providers if regulatory changes allow greater use of staking services. Optimism, while technologically advanced, has limited fee revenue accruing to the OP token, and its vision for an Optimism "superchain" may face competition from alternative rollup designs.

The Grayscale Research Top 20 list is a diversified set of assets across various Crypto Sectors, selected based on factors such as network growth, upcoming catalysts, sustainability of fundamentals, token valuation, token supply inflation, and potential tail risks. The list aims to identify assets with high potential over the coming quarter, providing investors with a snapshot of the most promising digital assets in the market. The inclusion of AVAX and MORPHO, along with the removal of LDO and OP, reflects the evolving landscape of the crypto market and the need for continuous evaluation of asset performance and potential.