Prediction: The Hard Times Are Ending for These 3 Leading Cryptocurrencies

I predict that the worst is over for Ethereum (CRYPTO: ETH), Solana (CRYPTO: SOL), and Arbitrum (CRYPTO: ARB), and that better times are quickly on the way for all three. As of Sept. 13, Ethereum is still 49% below its peak, Solana is 66% below its own all-time high, and Arbitrum is 94% below its all-time high.

If you held these coins through the (very) long slide downward, selling them now is going to be tempting. But don't do it. These assets have catalysts and growth drivers unlike ever before in their history, and they're going to start kicking in soon, so let's take a look at each.

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Ethereum is making major updates and laying the groundwork for the next big leg of growth

Ethereum's next substantial upgrade, Glamsterdam, is due to launch in the fourth quarter of 2026.

Glamsterdam raises the gas limit, the cap on computing work per block, to a target of 200 million. In theory, its gas repricing would make it less expensive to perform complicated calculations, like those required for executing some smart contracts.

The idea is to create new scaling features that are attractive for AI agents looking for a place to do business. As of Sept. 13, there were already more than 30,774 agents registered as operating on the network. As those agents transact with each other and with decentralized finance (DeFi) services on Ethereum, they'll generate significant transaction fees and economic activity, which will be a tailwind for the coin's price.

Importantly, changing both the terms of the network's scaling as well as attracting a new set of (automated) users will remedy some of the ailments that caused Ethereum to perform so poorly over the past five years, during which its price fell by 26% despite daily transactions rising by 24%. In a nutshell, that period saw the chain attempt a bold new scaling strategy of spinning off as much traffic as possible to independent Layer-2 (L2) networks while also slashing its transaction fees via a handful of technical tweaks.

The consequences were, in hindsight, predictable: By encouraging activity to go elsewhere and making it much cheaper to transact on the main chain, Ethereum tanked its own fee revenue, which had the add-on effect of reducing the rate at which its tokens are removed from circulation, which contributed to poor returns for holders. Glamsterdam carries some of the same risk, since cheaper computation and roomier blocks also lower what each transaction pays.

The bet is that new activity, including from agents, grows fast enough to more than make up the difference.

Solana will issue fewer coins, eventually

Solana is also competing to attract AI agents and is dealing with similar issues that affect its supply and its capacity to scale.

The data provider Bitquery registered approximately 800,000 likely agent payments on Solana on one day in August 2026, making it a leading chain for the purpose. That could just be the start, especially if it can add the capacity needed to maintain its low transaction costs and fast speeds, both of which are ideal for automated users transacting with each other.

Its supply is also on track to tighten somewhat, which will likely be a tailwind.

In August 2026, a governance vote to double the yearly decline in Solana's inflation rate passed with a 67% majority. That'll cut its issuance by 18.9 million coins over six years.

If that happens, expect the coin's valuation to rerate much higher.

Can Arbitrum become relevant again?

Arbitrum is in the process of making a heater of a comeback after years of doldrums, and it's mostly thanks to Robinhood Markets, whose new Robinhood Chain, launched in July, runs on Arbitrum's technology.

The license requires Robinhood Chain to send 10% of its net revenue to the Arbitrum ecosystem. On Sept. 13, Robinhood's network had net revenue of $723,077, so Arbitrum will get about $72,000 for no additional effort.

Considering that its own chain revenue for that same day was just $12,830, and that its entire haul from all of September 2025 totaled $1.6 million, Robinhood's contribution is going to be a massive tailwind. Robinhood's chain is sure to keep growing because it's a driver of earnings for the company, and it'll be promoted and invested in quite heavily, which essentially gives Arbitrum a free and growing new cash flow to invest in its own technology, ecosystem, or growth.

One catch is that it's mostly meme coin launches powering that activity on Robinhood's chain, and Robinhood is subsidizing transaction fees only until Sept. 29.

So, unless the subsidy drop-off proves to be much worse than expected, this coin is getting a new lease on life, and it'll be hard for it to experience such a prolonged downturn, as it's just coming out of a downturn.

Alex Carchidi has positions in Ethereum and Solana. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Ethereum and Solana. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.