Web3 experts: "ETFs and stablecoins, core to digital-asset industry growth" [Eastpoint: Seoul 2025]

On the 22nd at the Grand Hyatt Seoul in Yongsan-gu, Seoul, the global Web3 private conference 'Eastpoint 2025' held a panel discussion titled 'Institutional investment products: digital-asset ETFs, asset tokenization, stablecoins.' The discussion was chaired by Kim Baek-gyeom, partner at Hashed, and featured Hong Kim, Bitwise co-founder and chief technology officer (CTO), Yamki Chan, Circle Asia-Pacific (APAC) vice president, and Ade Adepoju, Riallo CEO as panelists, who discussed the growth potential and opportunities of the digital-asset (cryptocurrency) business.

"Spot ETFs and stablecoins, drivers of digital-asset market and business growth"

The panelists evaluated that spot digital-asset exchange-traded funds (ETFs), stablecoins, and RWA (real-world-asset tokenization) are driving market and business growth.

Kim, the co-founder, said, "Bitwise created an index fund as an alternative investment product in the era when digital-asset ETFs did not exist," adding, "It took six years for a spot Bitcoin ETF to be approved and there was strong resistance, but after listing growth accelerated rapidly. Over the past two years our assets under management expanded from $1 billion to $15 billion, a 15-fold increase." He also explained, "Most Bitwise clients are not individual investors who trade digital assets daily but institutional investors such as advisory firms and asset managers that allocate 2~5% of portfolio assets to cryptocurrencies."

There was also analysis that the financial industry is actively seeking business opportunities using stablecoins. Chan, the Asia-Pacific vice president, said, "Building a digital-asset business takes a very long time," and emphasized, "We worked with regulators in the United States, Europe, Singapore, and Japan to prove trustworthiness and safety, and through that we gained trust." He added, "Recently institutions are moving on-chain, and the asset management industry is simultaneously seeking cost savings and revenue generation through stablecoins."

Projections were raised that new opportunities are opening in the RWA field. Adepoju, the CEO, said, "We aim to provide an all-in-one service for clients," and explained, "Existing (blockchain) networks are overly complex and there are still high entry barriers for institutions. Riallo is building a new network to lower these barriers and make RWA easily accessible." He explained, "Our philosophy is that the blockchain should come to the client, not the client have to approach the blockchain."

"Digital-asset market: balancing innovation and risk is important… Implications for Korean stablecoins"

The panelists also viewed that the industry has shown stable growth since the introduction of spot ETFs. Kim, the co-founder, said, "About $50 billion flowed into Bitcoin ETFs in the two years since the introduction of spot Bitcoin ETFs and prices nearly doubled, but the system operated stably," and added, "Ultimately investor protection is key for growth." He said, "In the past, when large sums flowed in, complex procedures such as brokerage or wiring would follow, but now it has shown that orderly growth is possible," adding, "If innovation had been accepted earlier, investors could have been protected sooner."

It was also pointed out that improving user experience (UX) is essential to attract more capital. Adepoju, the CEO, said, "Bitcoin ETFs were unfamiliar at first but are now familiar. Ultimately user adoption comes down to the issue of 'friction'," and added, "Early cryptocurrency users grew based on existing ideology, but going forward that will be entirely different. Convenience and intuitive UX will be far more important for them."

Advice regarding the Korean stablecoin market followed. Yamki Chan, Circle's Asia-Pacific vice president, said, "It is important not to view risk and innovation as mutually exclusive," and explained, "In the 'Money Move' area, stablecoins can greatly reduce credit risk in bank-to-bank transfers. This efficiency can itself be innovation and a solution to risk management."