The Great Lock-in: Why Privacy Chains Could Quietly Capture Most of Crypto This Year

Privacy-first blockchains could emerge as crypto’s dominant power centers, as a16z crypto argues secrecy, not speed, may create winner-take-most dynamics and durable lock-in as onchain finance moves toward real-world adoption.

Why a16z Crypto Sees Privacy Chains Reshaping Onchain Value

Crypto’s next power shift may hinge less on speed and more on secrecy. Venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz (a16z) outlined views on Jan. 6, suggesting that privacy-first blockchains could quietly reshape competition by creating durable lock-in as onchain finance expands.

Ali Yahya, a16z crypto general partner, stated, “Privacy is the one feature that’s critical for the world’s finance to move onchain,” describing it as a differentiator that most existing blockchains still lack. He expanded on the competitive implications by explaining:

This creates a winner-take-most dynamic. And because privacy is essential for most real-world use cases, a handful of privacy chains could own most of crypto.

Yahya detailed how performance and fees have become commoditized across networks, while privacy introduces friction that fundamentally alters user behavior. He noted that although bridging protocols make it trivial to move public assets between chains, private systems introduce risks around metadata exposure, transaction timing, and identity correlation. That friction, he emphasized, discourages migration and reinforces chain-level loyalty, creating durable network effects that are difficult for generalized, transparent blockchains to replicate.

Near this discussion, a16z crypto engineer Daejun Park outlined how security design reinforces these dynamics, explaining: “So the once-popular idea of ‘code is law’ evolves into ‘spec is law’: Even a novel attack must satisfy the same safety properties that keep the system intact, so the only attacks left are tiny or extremely hard to execute.” His view emphasized enforceable invariants and runtime guardrails as necessary foundations for high-stakes, privacy-preserving systems.

Read more: A Year of Crypto Plot Twists: Privacy Coins Reclaim Their Power in 2025

Other a16z crypto contributors extended the privacy thesis beyond blockchains into messaging and data infrastructure. XMTP Labs co-founder and chief executive officer Shane Mac explained:

This is greater than quantum resistance and encryption; it’s ownership and decentralization. Without both, all we’re doing is building unbreakable encryption that can still be switched off.

His comments underscored the limitations of centralized servers in messaging systems, even when advanced cryptography is used, and highlighted the need for open, decentralized protocols where users retain direct control over their messages and identities.

Mysten Labs chief product officer and co-founder Adeniyi Abiodun added, “Combined with verifiable data systems, secrets could then become part of the internet’s fundamental public infrastructure — rather than an application-level patch, where privacy is bolted on after the fact — making privacy core infrastructure.” He described how secrets-as-a-service, enforced through decentralized key management and onchain rules, could unlock institutional adoption across finance and healthcare.

FAQ ⏰

• Why does a16z crypto believe privacy-first blockchains will dominate?

Because privacy creates migration friction and network effects that public blockchains struggle to replicate.

• What problem do privacy chains solve for real-world finance?

They reduce metadata exposure and identity correlation that prevent institutions from moving onchain.

• How does privacy change blockchain competition?

It shifts competition away from fees and performance toward durable chain-level loyalty.

• Why is decentralized ownership critical alongside encryption?

Without decentralization, encrypted systems can still be controlled or shut down by centralized actors.