ARK Invest Research Head Estimates 2026 Crypto Theft at $8.5B

Lorenzo Valente, ARK Invest’s digital assets research head, put the value of crypto assets stolen in 2026 at about $8.5 billion through Oct. 30, equal to 0.33% of the year’s average market capitalization. The new tally adds to Valente’s argument that hacking creates hidden costs for users. Since 2018, annual hacking losses have averaged 0.24% of crypto market capitalization, he said. Valente compared that rate with fraud losses in the U.S. banking system, which he put at 1.7 basis points of deposits. He described the crypto rate as about 14 times higher.