DigiAssets APAC 2025 Blog

Grace Chong, Head of Financial Regulatory at Drew & Napier, shares insights on the complexities of global financial markets, emphasizing AI's transformative role beyond operational efficiencies to reshaping products, processes, and customer experiences. With her extensive experience, she highlights challenges and discusses strategies for navigating geopolitical tensions. She underscores the importance of robust governance frameworks, industry consortia, and standardized tools for algorithmic transparency to foster responsible AI innovation.

In recent years, Asia is rapidly becoming a global leader in digital assets, driven by robust innovation, fast adoption, and strong institutional support. As the ecosystem matures, the region’s influence in reshaping financial markets continues to grow. This blog explores the current state of digital assets in Asia, highlighting key developments in adoption, regulation, and market infrastructure.

The Asia-Pacific region is leading the way in digital assets. In early 2024, this region handled 29% of all digital currency transactions worldwide, more than North America (19%) or Western Europe (22%). Countries like Singapore, Hong Kong, and Japan are at the forefront of this trend.

More people and businesses in Asia are becoming interested in digital assets. A recent study found that about half of wealthy Asian investors own some form of cryptocurrency. Furthermore, nearly half of the companies in the region are actively working on blockchain and digital asset projects, with some already using them on a large scale. Even big banks are getting involved, with UBS and HSBC allowing their rich clients in Hong Kong to trade crypto ETFs.

This growth is changing how money works in Asia. This article will look at ways to boost adoption, the challenges involved, and what the future might hold for digital assets in the region.

The ability to take real-world assets and tokenize them on a blockchain platform has been gaining attention in the financial industry. This process, known as asset tokenization, allows for the digital representation of physical assets such as real estate properties or art pieces. By digitizing these assets, they can be more easily traded and accessed by a wider pool of investors.

This article will explore case studies where the tokenization of real-world assets has had a positive impact on the economy in the Pacific-Asia region and how investors can navigate the diverse landscape of tokenized assets. We'll also explore the challenges this industry faces and the future potential it holds.