Hashed releases Korean edition of 'Protocol Economy: Hashed 2026'…RWA, stablecoin transition draw attention

Global Web3 venture capital firm Hashed announced on the 24th that it has released the Korean edition of its annual report 'Protocol Economy: Hashed 2026.' The report comprehensively examined the trend of the digital asset industry transitioning from short-term price fluctuations and narrative-driven markets to an economic structure that actually functions.

Hashed assessed in the report that around 2026 digital assets have begun to move beyond being merely 'investment targets' and are taking root as infrastructure performing core economic functions such as payments, settlement, credit, and operations. Blockchain is evolving beyond a simple technology platform into an operational layer that processes actual business workflows of companies and institutions, and Hashed analyzed that this change is already materializing in some areas.

The report identified 2025 as a turning point for the digital asset industry as a whole. It stated that, after a phase of excessive experimentation and discourse, services with actual usability and repeatable structures have begun to be selected in earnest. In this process, the report analyzed that actual demand, operational stability, and long-term sustainability are becoming the industry's competitive criteria, rather than price increases or short-term liquidity.

In particular, Chapter 3 of the report covered the key areas that Hashed members consider important for digital assets to transition into a 'working economy.' The convergence of AI agents and Web3 development environments, institution-friendly infrastructure predicated on privacy and regulatory compliance, stablecoins as global payment and corporate/institutional settlement infrastructure, real-world asset tokenization (RWA) and private credit were presented as areas creating new financial use cases within on-chain structures. The report also reinterpreted Bitcoin and Ethereum not by price volatility but by network activity, usage metrics, and structural characteristics, and included discussion on the unique revenue structures and value capture mechanisms of digital assets.

Hashed explained that these elements do not exist independently but combine to form a single operating framework. The analysis holds that digital assets can function as a 'protocol economy' connected to the real economy when financial infrastructure responsible for payments and settlement, AI-based actors that autonomously make judgments and transact, and privacy- and regulation-friendly infrastructure usable by institutions and companies interlock.

Seojun Kim, CEO of Hashed, said, "The important question now is not whether new technology has emerged, but whether structures that actually work are being created," adding, "Digital assets and AI are becoming an operating system that changes how the economy runs, not an individual industry or a temporary trend."

The Korean edition of 'Protocol Economy: Hashed 2026' was released via Hashed's official Medium channel, and Hashed plans to continuously share structural changes in digital assets with domestic industry, policymakers, and market participants.