Hashed Open Research Says South Korea Trails in Digital-Asset Commercialization Despite Tech Edge

South Korea has strong technological and industrial foundations but has yet to translate them into digital-asset commercialization and institutional competitiveness, according to a new analysis. As major economies incorporate digital assets into national strategy, South Korea also needs an execution framework to coordinate policy and support commercialization.

Hashed Open Research, or HOR, the think tank of Hashed, said on October 8 that it had published a report titled "National Strategy and Market Evolution Through Digital Asset Policy," comparing policies in the US, European Union, Japan, China and South Korea. The report described South Korea as being in a "high-capability, low-conversion" state, with industrial transformation lagging its technological capacity. Fragmented ministry-level policies and slow institutional reform are limiting the market's potential, it said.

The US is using digital assets to expand capital markets and strengthen the dollar's influence. It is widening channels for institutional capital through spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds and tokenized securities, while securing a transaction base for digital finance through dollar-pegged stablecoins. The EU is focused on setting regulatory standards through MiCA, its crypto-asset framework. Even if regional payment infrastructure grows, however, dependence on dollar stablecoins could deepen, meaning that would not necessarily translate into stronger monetary sovereignty, the report said.

Japan is incorporating digital assets into existing businesses such as payments, custody and content intellectual property, with financial groups and corporations at the center. Its strategy is to define the responsibilities and roles of market participants while building the industry's foundation. China, meanwhile, is restricting crypto trading on the mainland and fostering industrial blockchain development, while pursuing links with international capital through Hong Kong's licensing-based trading and tokenization market.

HOR said South Korea must first clarify the economic goals it wants to achieve through digital assets. Policymakers should set priorities among corporate fundraising, financial-industry competitiveness, the digital transformation of industry and links to international markets, then reflect those priorities in an integrated institutional design for payments and asset markets.

It also proposed a system linking policy and markets so pilot projects lead to commercialization. Common infrastructure should be opened so private services can compete on top of it, and from the outset there should be a path for proof-of-concept projects, or PoCs, to transition into live services.

"South Korea should also make this a core pillar of future national competitiveness and design a strategy at the national level," an HOR official said. "It needs to show policy execution that goes beyond segmented, fragmented measures and connects changes in technology and markets to real industrial transformation."