Hashed Open Research Analyzes Southeast Asia's Rise as a 'Practical Stage' for Digital Assets

Southeast Asia is building its own digital financial ecosystem based on local practical needs such as remittances, currency sovereignty, and financial accessibility, rather than simply replicating the financial models of the United States and Europe. With the emergence of actual services such as tokenized assets, stablecoin payments, and AI agent finance, Southeast Asia is rising as a 'practical stage' for the global digital asset industry.

Hashed Open Research, the policy think tank of global blockchain, AI, and content venture capital firm Hashed, published a report titled "Institutions Created by Necessity: Choices and Realities of Digital Assets in Southeast Asia" in collaboration with Thailand's leading financial holding company SCBX on the 22nd. This report was prepared based on the keynote speech and informal roundtable discussions held during the 'Southeast Asia Blockchain Week 2026' in Bangkok last May. Now in its third year, Southeast Asia Blockchain Week is a major blockchain event in the region organized by Hashed, its subsidiary Shard Labs, and SCBX.

The report highlights the phenomenon of global payment companies like Visa and Mastercard, along with major financial institutions in Southeast Asia, focusing on the region as a testing ground for next-generation digital finance. From June 2024 to June 2025, the on-chain transaction volume in the Asia-Pacific region is expected to increase by approximately 68%, from $1.4 trillion to $2.36 trillion. Hashed Open Research diagnosed that Southeast Asia is no longer a market that merely replicates Western financial models but is transforming into a market that builds its own digital financial ecosystem based on local practical needs.

One Southeast Asia, Two Contrasting Digital Financial Strategies

The report categorizes the digital asset strategies of six Southeast Asian countries into 'aggressive' and 'defensive' approaches.

Singapore, Thailand, and Malaysia are accelerating the establishment of a digital financial market based on local currencies, centered around institutional financial organizations. Singapore is expanding its regulatory-based Singapore dollar stablecoin ecosystem, while Thailand is demonstrating Baht-based stablecoins and programmable payments through its central bank regulatory sandbox. Malaysia is also promoting the introduction of Ringgit-based stablecoins and tokenized deposits, while fostering the combination of Islamic finance and tokenization as a new growth driver.

In contrast, Vietnam, Indonesia, and the Philippines are focusing on integrating the digitally-driven asset markets that initially grew around individuals into the regulatory framework and suppressing the spread of the dollar. In Vietnam, approximately $200 billion in on-chain transactions occur annually, with dollar-based stablecoins being used as a means of storing value in a capital control environment. In the Philippines, around $35 billion in remittances from overseas workers flow in annually, with stablecoins emerging as a new remittance method that complements the existing financial network.

Pioneering an Independent Tokenization Ecosystem... 'Convincing Commercial Banks is Key to Success'

The report pointed out that real-world examples are emerging in Southeast Asia that address issues that were difficult to solve with existing off-chain financial systems through blockchain and tokenization. One notable movement is the combination of Islamic finance and tokenization in Malaysia. Malaysia is pushing for the tokenization of Sukuk bonds, which are based on Sharia law, in collaboration with its sovereign wealth fund Khazanah Nasional, targeting the global Islamic finance market worth hundreds of billions of dollars.

During the roundtable, examples were also introduced where tokenization was applied to gold assets that had previously remained in simple storage within the existing financial structure, creating new revenue and liquidity. By providing collateral loans to gold retailers with the funds from tokenized gold funds, interest income is generated, while enabling monthly distribution that was challenging in traditional gold funds.

It is also noteworthy that South Korean financial companies are participating as major partners in the tokenization ecosystem being built in Southeast Asia. Kyobo Securities has partnered with SCBX's subsidiary TokenX and Singapore's SBI Digital Market to launch a cross-border project to tokenize physical wine assets. This case connects the financial and digital asset infrastructure of South Korea, Thailand, and Singapore, highlighting the direct involvement of South Korean financial companies in the tokenization financial ecosystem being established in Southeast Asia.

The report identified the unexpected bottleneck hindering the full commercialization of the tokenization market as the lack of participation from commercial banks, rather than regulations. Despite obtaining a double-A rating from Moody's, the Singapore dollar-based tokenized government bond fund failed to secure sufficient investment demand. In subsequent projects aimed at improving product viability, securing bank infrastructure has acted as a barrier to commercialization. Even with regulatory approval, without the participation of commercial banks that provide existing financial infrastructure such as account opening and payment/custody, it is difficult to launch tokenized products in the actual market.

In particular, the report analyzed that commercial banks have not yet confirmed the sufficient business viability of tokenized products, leading to their passive stance on providing related infrastructure. Accordingly, it suggested that tokenization operators should consider the potential for commercial bank participation and business interests from the initial product design phase, in addition to obtaining approval from regulatory authorities.

The Era of Payments Below One Cent... New Financial Infrastructure for AI Agents

The roundtable also addressed the convergence of artificial intelligence and Web3 as a key agenda. In particular, it is anticipated that as agent-to-agent (A2A) commerce, where AI agents purchase services and make payments without human intervention, spreads, new payment demands that are difficult to handle with existing financial infrastructure will arise. The ultra-small and ultra-high-frequency transactions below one cent generated by AI agents are too costly to process through existing credit card networks, necessitating dedicated blockchain payment infrastructure designed to eliminate gas fees or set fees at predictable levels.

Real-world examples of building financial infrastructure that combines AI and blockchain were also introduced. Avalanche revealed that a domestic electronic payment service provider (PG) handling payments for Netflix, Apple, Amazon, and Spotify is establishing a stablecoin settlement system for merchants. When merchants issue fund allocation instructions in natural language, AI converts them into smart contracts to automatically execute settlements. Global payment companies Visa and Mastercard are also focusing on the Southeast Asian consumer base, which is young and digitally receptive, using the region as a testing ground for new digital financial services.

Hashed CEO Kim Seo-jun predicted that A2A commerce, performed by machines and software without human intervention, could grow into an independent economic domain comparable to B2B and B2C.

Shard Labs CEO Kim Ho-jin emphasized that Southeast Asia is not merely a market with high traffic or user numbers but a center for value creation, stating, "The Southeast Asian market is rapidly transitioning from a customer-centric market to one led by developers and entrepreneurs."

Kaweewut Temphuwapat, Chief Innovation Officer (CIO) of SCBX and head of SCB 10X, which co-published the report, stated, "We are not building infrastructure just for specific institutions or investors, but driving financial innovation for everyone who deserves better financial accessibility."

The full report can be found on the official website of Hashed Open Research.

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