The Next Map of Digital Asset Regulation According to Asian Authorities｜WebX2026

Regulations Change, Markets Move: Asian Authorities Roundtable

At the Limitless stage of WebX2026, regulatory officials from Pakistan, Thailand, Malaysia, and Indonesia gathered with a former White House advisor to discuss the current state of digital asset regulation and growth areas beyond 2026. They candidly addressed how to visualize a market that has spread from the grassroots level and whether an Asian version of MiCA can be realized.

Pakistan: Lessons from a Market Expanded Without Regulation

Angelina Kwan first highlighted that Pakistan has recorded one of the highest grassroots cryptocurrency adoption rates in the world, even in the absence of regulation, and asked what lessons regulating an already massive informal market could provide to countries and regions starting from scratch.
Bilal Bin Saqib
In the 20th century, governments granted licenses to industries before citizens could participate. In the 21st century, it is the opposite; citizens adopt technology first, and governments catch up later. Therefore, the role of regulatory authorities fundamentally changes. It is no longer our job to decide whether innovation occurs; society has already answered that question. Our responsibility has shifted to ensuring that innovation happens safely, transparently, and in a manner that serves national interests.
Pakistan has become one of the largest grassroots digital asset markets without a formal regulatory framework. Three lessons can be drawn from this experience. First, the absence of regulation does not mean the absence of activity; it simply makes it less visible and harder to hold accountable. Second, regulators must listen before legislating. The vast informal market contains crucial information about where citizens participate and where friction exists in the existing financial system. Third, regulations must be created that are practical enough to encourage entry into a regulated framework while maintaining sufficient reliability to protect the public. Good regulation does not create new adoption; it exposes existing adoption to light.
While the principles of FATF and IOSCO are essential for combating illicit funds and ensuring market integrity, there is another question that needs to be raised for the Global South: how can digital assets support economic development? Amid high remittance costs, a significant informal sector, limited access to capital, and gaps in infrastructure financing, young people are entering the digital market at a pace that traditional financial institutions cannot keep up with. The future of global finance should not be determined solely by a few developed countries; the Global South must also have a presence in the places where standards are set.

Thailand: Schedule for Securities Tokenization and Cryptocurrency ETF Development

Angelina Kwan then touched on the progress of securities tokenization centered around tokenized MMFs and bonds in Japan, asking Dr. Nopnuanparn Pavasant how the rules for physical cryptocurrency ETFs scheduled for the third quarter of 2026 are being structured in terms of market opening and regulatory enforcement, and what the next priority for the Thai SEC is.
Dr. Nopnuanparn Pavasant
The SEC supports market opening, development, and innovation, but investor protection is also one of our primary roles. Our plan from 2026 to 2029 focuses on utilizing technology in the capital market, positioning cryptocurrency as an asset class for investment, and advancing the framework for cryptocurrency ETFs. In terms of supervision, we are using data and technology to oversee cryptocurrency, including legal stablecoins.
The tokenization of securities and the issuance of security tokens are regulated under securities law, and this year, the Thai SEC established a Digital Securities Ecosystem Center. We are promoting use cases starting with bonds, mutual funds, and MMFs, and currently, there are about six participants interested in issuing tokenized MMFs and bonds. In April of this year, we revised MMF regulations, established definitions and standards for tokenized funds, and enabled immediate adjustments of investment units based on real-time settlement via blockchain. In terms of settlement, we are collaborating with the Bank of Thailand on on-chain payments and stablecoins for the Thai baht.
Public consultations regarding cryptocurrency ETFs were held on May 11, and we are currently considering the framework. We advise investors not to allocate more than 5% of their portfolios to cryptocurrencies, based on the risk characteristics of the asset class and the perspective of diversified investment. A public hearing on regulations related to the travel rule concluded on July 10, and we are currently reviewing the feedback received, with implementation expected within this month. We are also collaborating with the Bank of Thailand, the AML office, and the police on anti-money laundering measures, and we hope to deepen discussions on the travel rule with regulatory authorities from various countries.

Malaysia: Strengthening Competitiveness of Onshore Market and Tokenization Pilot

Angelina Kwan noted that Malaysia was one of the first countries to officially regulate cryptocurrencies and asked Dr. Wong Huei Ching how they strategically position the dual focus on strengthening the onshore market and utilizing blockchain in traditional finance, given the significant announcements expected in the first half of 2026.
Dr. Wong Huei Ching
Malaysia conducted a situational assessment over a year ago. The onshore market faces common challenges with offshore markets, including the increasing recognition of cases where cryptocurrencies are used for illegal activities. Therefore, we believe it is necessary to first enhance the competitiveness of the onshore market, liberalize it, and develop it. As the market develops, it will ultimately help suppress the offshore market.
In this process, we also emphasize involving a broader financial ecosystem, including banks. The cryptocurrency market was initially seen as a small market lacking sufficient trust from the banking sector. Therefore, while allowing exchanges to liberalize their products, we have tightened rules to ensure that they can do more while taking on greater responsibility. We have also shared rules with banks to gather feedback, which has proven beneficial.
Currently, traditional intermediaries are increasingly offering cryptocurrencies as an asset class, and guidance on how to provide digital asset ETFs is also being developed. Fund managers were originally able to invest in digital assets, but we have clarified how traditional brokers can provide them. The pilot started with tokenized MMFs and tokenized sukuk (Islamic bonds) in collaboration with government funds, and we are now advancing to a more sophisticated stage of how tokenized securities will settle with tokenized deposits. As the pilots accumulate, demand for tokenized products within Malaysia is growing significantly.

Indonesia: Localized Custody Model and Investor Protection

Angelina Kwan pointed out that Indonesia's cryptocurrency market adopts a highly localized model involving domestic custodians and transactions through banks and clearinghouses. She asked Uli Agustina whether this design could be deployed in other emerging markets and how they balance investor protection with the competitiveness of the domestic market.
Uli Agustina
First, I would like to correct the numbers. As of June 17, 2026, the number of cryptocurrency accounts in Indonesia has already reached 22.4 million. This is an increase from 15 million at the end of last December, and we have only passed half of 2026. On the same day, cryptocurrencies were officially incorporated into financial assets as a major asset class under the new Financial Strengthening and Development Law, becoming one of the pillars supporting the national economy and digital economy.
This architecture is intentionally designed around the domestic financial and regulatory ecosystem and is not simply a model that can be copied elsewhere. However, there are transferable elements. We have established independent custodians for institutional investors to protect consumer assets and mitigate operational risks in the event of bankruptcy or cyber incidents. We have also integrated digital assets into the formal financial sector while enhancing AML strategies, transaction traceability, and consumer protection through on-chain fiat currency settlements via the banking system and centralized post-transaction infrastructure.
Investor protection is a top priority, but balancing it with the competitiveness of the domestic market is also essential. We are allowing users to transition from overseas platforms that impose overly strict regulations and lack adequate consumer protection to the domestic market. OJK's sandbox and SupTech enable real-time monitoring, and projects for tokenizing gold, government bonds, and real estate are also underway. Through a task force called "Satgas Pasti," involving regulatory authorities, the central bank, FATF departments, and the police, we can track the flow of funds across borders, and in recent cases, we have recovered about 20% of the stolen funds. In the future, we believe that digital asset markets in various countries should strengthen interconnectivity and enhance alignment with international standards and FATF recommendations. While institutional models can differ from country to country, we should aim for common outcomes in consumer protection, market integrity, financial crime prevention, and responsible innovation.

United States: Gaps in Oversight and Dollarization Risks Highlighted by the GENIUS Act

Considering the situations in various countries, Angelina Kwan posed the question, "Is Asia truly moving towards genuine regulatory harmonization, or towards competing block formations?" As the U.S. federal stablecoin regulation becomes a global benchmark, she sought Carole House's insights on the biggest oversight blind spots in the maturation process of Asia's regulatory framework from the perspective of combating illicit funds.
Carole House
I think it is a false dichotomy to interpret differing frameworks as evidence of a lack of harmonization. Musical harmony does not mean everyone sings the same note; it means playing the same chord. Interoperability and trust are required. The international monetary system has never depended on identical laws. Trusted institutions have relied on a foundation of interoperable means and shared trust to achieve equivalent outcomes. While some voices expect the interoperability approach created by the GENIUS Act to be copied and pasted into other jurisdictions, that is unlikely to happen in reality.
Regarding the U.S. framework, some may say that the GENIUS Act is comprehensive, but in reality, it is not that comprehensive. The U.S. has not regulated payments at the federal level, so creating this on-ramp is an important first step. However, many challenges remain regarding the treatment of bankruptcy and defaults. While high liquidity and high-quality assets and reserves are required, immediate access to them has not been established, leaving unresolved issues surrounding secondary market transactions that keep the door open for offshore activities denominated in U.S. dollars. Concerns about geopolitical liquidity issues and unregulated dollarization are also significant. Emerging markets have expressed concerns about dollars flowing out of domestic bank deposits without sufficient oversight.
In an era where anonymous securities are settled immediately by agents 24/7, I feel that no one truly understands where stability resides. We need to establish standards for how to share supervisory data in an interoperable manner, what data can be provided to whom, and ensure that this data is adequately protected. While blockchain has ushered in an unprecedented era of financial transparency, much work remains to connect that transparency with legal frameworks and RegTech to reach the stage of real-time supervision.

Session Summary

Towards the end, Angelina Kwan noted that Hong Kong is also advancing the introduction of a licensing system for digital asset custodians and asked the audience, "As MiCA is fully implemented in Europe and the U.S. moves with its own framework, can Asian regulatory authorities collaborate to aim for something like an Asian version of MiCA?"
In response, one panelist remarked that cooperation among regulatory authorities is already progressing at the level of ACMF (ASEAN Capital Market Forum), moving towards a certain degree of harmonization in the form of developing industry best practices. They pointed out that the regulatory cooperation regarding tokenization is already showing the first signals within the region.
Citing Carole House's words, "Rather than copy and paste, how can each country accept digital assets under their respective regulations while harmonizing practices?" the session concluded with expectations for holding in-person roundtable discussions.