Asia Morning Briefing: Infrastructure, Not Narratives, to Fuel Crypto’s Next Rally, Says Hashed

Hashed: 2026 Will Be the Year Digital Assets Act as an Economy, Led by Asia

Korean venture firm Hashed has outlined its 2026 investment thesis, identifying stablecoins, AI agents, and on-chain credit markets as the foundations of a real digital economy. Asia, the firm says, is emerging as the first region to see enterprise adoption take hold.

Hashed argues that the crypto market is finally moving from narrative-driven hype to structural growth. In 2026, digital assets are expected to behave like an economy rather than a speculative category: stablecoins will serve as global settlement rails, while AI agents become autonomous economic participants, reshaping where real value lies.

The Protocol Economy 2026 report highlights early signals in Asia: regulated stablecoin pilots, AI agent deployments, and expanding real-world asset (RWA) and treasury workflows are forming the first on-chain enterprise systems. Hashed sees the investable frontier in these structural layers, where programmable rails for payments, credit, and settlement enable adaptive economic systems driven by stable liquidity and verifiable demand.

The firm notes this represents a correction from the past two years, when speculative flows obscured which sectors were generating real usage. Now, activity is clearly compounding in stablecoins, on-chain credit, and automation infrastructure, particularly in Asia, where regulators in Korea, Japan, Hong Kong, and Singapore are creating frameworks to integrate stablecoins, tokenized deposits, and RWA issuance into traditional finance.

AI, Hashed adds, will accelerate this transition by programmatically managing payments, liquidity, and transactions, increasing demand for transparent rails. The next growth phase, the firm says, favors builders working at the intersection of real liquidity and automation—the space Hashed plans to target with investments in 2026.

Market Snapshot

• BTC: Around $92,000, struggling to hold near $94,000; low-liquidity range $85,000–$95,000.
• ETH: Above $3,100, outperforming Bitcoin with minimal decline.
• Gold: Consolidating near $4,200 amid weaker USD and higher yields.
• Nikkei 225: Opened lower, with Nikkei down 1.36% and Topix off 1.12%.

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