After the two largest cryptocurrencies, Bitcoin and Ether, have seen a surge in popularity, the soaring value of meme coins and non-fungible tokens has made the notoriously volatile asset class a must-own item for many retail and institutional investors alike.

"Excitement is what excitement is," David Tawil, president of ProChain Capital in New York, said. "Certainly what's newsworthy and makes headlines is top of mind, and I think people get excited with big percentage moves. They want to see if they can make 1,000% on something."

This was the year Wall Street institutions started to take cryptocurrencies seriously.

Of course, Bitcoin has been a mainstay for many coins since the big bang in 2017. Darker years made those conversations harder. For example, in 2018, Bitcoin fell by about 75%, which forced believers to avoid the topic altogether. But cryptocurrency fans say they feel more confident in a red-hot market. Bitcoin and Ether have gained about 100% and 500% respectively this year. The global cryptocurrency market capitalization even rose to about $3 trillion at some point, and then fell sharply in mid-November.

With the rise of retail investing after lockdowns during the pandemic, more and more people have started investing in crypto. At the beginning of this year, a study by the New York Digital Investment Group found that 44 million Americans, or 22% of the adult population, own bitcoin. However, this number is probably higher now.

The rampant support of the industry from celebrities and brilliant TV ads have helped take ownership to the next level. The total number of unique wallets used to store cryptocurrencies created on Blockchain.com is around 80 million, up from 58 million at the same time last year. Major sports teams are accepting crypto sponsorships, and an increasing number of arenas are carrying the logos of crypto firms.

"Everyone's going to be talking about crypto - what else is there to talk about? Are you going to talk about movies? Are you going to talk about sports? Are you going to talk about the weather?" chief strategy officer at digital-asset firm CoinShares, Meltem Demirors, said. "Crypto is part of the zeitgeist, it's part of the culture and it's definitely a big part of the financial system at this point."