Kevin O'Leary is betting big on crypto and AI infrastructure, predicting that most altcoins will not recover.

Regulatory policies become the backbone for the growth of the institutional crypto market. Famous investor Kevin O’Leary from Shark Tank explained in an interview with CoinDesk that the real turning point will come when US regulations allow yield on stablecoin accounts—a change he considers highly significant in opening the floodgates for massive investments from traditional financial institutions. Currently, with Bitcoin priced at $79.01K and Ethereum at $2.45K, the digital market has demonstrated long-term potential, but institutions are still waiting for a clear legal framework to make substantial commitments.

O’Leary expressed concern over the proposed US Senate crypto market structure bill. He stated that the clause prohibiting yield on stablecoin accounts creates an uneven playing field, giving an unfair advantage to traditional banks. This restriction even prompted leading exchanges like Coinbase to withdraw support for the bill earlier this month. “Until regulation permits offering yields to stablecoin account holders, this legislation is likely to be hindered,” O’Leary said. Coinbase itself reported $355 million in revenue from stablecoin yield services in Q3 2025 alone, indicating significant revenue potential if regulatory barriers can be removed.

Betting on physical infrastructure rather than digital tokens

O’Leary’s strategy differs from other crypto investors. He is not solely focused on the price volatility of digital assets but is making large investments in physical infrastructure that supports the crypto and AI ecosystems. O’Leary has acquired 26,000 hectares of land across strategic locations, including 13,000 hectares in Alberta, Canada—announced previously—and an additional 13,000 hectares in undisclosed sites still in the permitting process.

His investment philosophy is simple yet strong: before building data centers or mining facilities, companies need access to land and abundant energy resources. O’Leary compares this to real estate developers seeking quality land to build skyscrapers. The difference is, O’Leary does not want to build these facilities himself. A more profitable strategy is to acquire land and power contracts and then lease them back to companies that need them for their construction. “My job is to prepare permits that are ready for all needs—whether for Bitcoin mining, AI data centers, or cloud computing,” he explained.

O’Leary believes that about half of the data centers announced in the past three years will never be built. He sees this as a reflection of “land grab without a deep understanding of what is truly needed.” The land he has acquired is being prepared to support high-energy infrastructure with full utility considerations—electricity, water, fiber optics, and air rights. Power contracts at some locations he controls are actually more valuable than Bitcoin itself, especially sites offering rates below six cents per kilowatt-hour. This is why O’Leary views infrastructure as a far more valuable asset than tokens in the long term.

O’Leary’s commitment to the crypto sector has grown through various channels. He holds over 19% of his portfolio in crypto-related assets and infrastructure, including investments in BitZero, a company managing data centers in Norway, Finland, and North Dakota. These facilities provide Bitcoin mining and high-performance computing services for various institutional users.

Bitcoin and Ethereum dominate, while altcoins continue to slump

O’Leary’s overall outlook on the crypto market is very clear: only Bitcoin and Ethereum deserve serious attention from institutional capital. This is not just an opinion but supported by data analysis. Recent research from Charles Schwab shows that nearly 80% of the estimated $3.2 trillion crypto market value is tied to core blockchains like Bitcoin and Ethereum, confirming that the industry’s value remains concentrated in the two largest networks despite thousands of new projects competing for attention.

Data indicates that to capture 97.2% of all crypto market volatility since inception, investors only need two positions: Bitcoin and Ethereum. This statistic demonstrates the absolute dominance of these two assets in driving market movements. “All the junk coins are still stuck down between 60 and 90% and they will never come back,” O’Leary emphasized in his interview.

O’Leary’s skepticism toward altcoins is further reinforced by his cautious view of recently launched crypto ETFs. While these instruments have helped bring some retail capital into the market, their impact on institutional investors has been minimal. “In the context of financial services industry asset allocation, crypto ETFs are not just a teenage acne… they are meaningless,” O’Leary stated firmly. This highlights how the institutional market largely ignores most of the existing crypto projects.

The future depends on supportive regulation

In conclusion, O’Leary believes that significant institutional adoption of the crypto ecosystem depends on regulatory policy changes in the United States. The ongoing crypto market structure bill is his main focus. If the clause restricting yields on stablecoins can be removed or amended, it will open the floodgates for massive institutional capital allocation into Bitcoin and other digital assets.

O’Leary remains optimistic that the bill will be improved. When those revisions happen, he believes it will serve as a catalyst for an unprecedented wave of institutional investment into Bitcoin and its supporting infrastructure. His current strategy—placing large bets on physical infrastructure—is the right positioning to capitalize on this positive regulatory momentum in the future.