Southeast Asia Blockchain Week 2026, jointly organized by Web3 investment firm Hashed, led by CEO Simon Seojoon Kim, and ShardLab under CEO Hojin Kim, wrapped up its two-day conference at ICONSIAM Hall in Bangkok. The gathering featured regulators from Thailand and Indonesia, executives from SCBX, Bitkub, and Ascend Bit, as well as representatives from major international organizations such as Circle, Tether, and the Solana Foundation. The event highlighted the region’s transition from early-stage blockchain experimentation toward broader institutional integration.

The conference agenda focused on five core themes: navigating the evolving regulatory landscape; the convergence of institutional finance and blockchain ecosystems; the next phase of real-world asset (RWA) tokenization; the rise of the agent-driven digital economy; and the importance of foundational blockchain infrastructure. Together, these discussions reinforced Southeast Asia’s growing role as an active hub for implementing and scaling global Web3 adoption rather than merely observing industry trends.

A major component of the policy discussions included contributions from Butree Vangsirirungruang, Director of Thailand SEC’s Digital Asset Policy Department; representatives from the Thailand Digital Asset Association (TDA); and Muhammad Neil El Himam, Deputy for Digital and Technology Creativity at Indonesia’s Ministry of Creative Economy (EKRAF). Bringing policymakers from two of the region’s largest economies together on one platform marked a significant milestone for the conference.

Thailand’s financial and digital asset sectors were represented by Kaweewut Temphuwapat, CIO of SCBX and CEO of SCB 10X; Bitkub co-founder Atthakrit Chimplapibul; and Apinand Dabpetch, Managing Director of Ascend Bit, the blockchain arm of True Money under CP Group. They discussed the modernization of Thailand’s financial systems through blockchain technology. Additional speakers included David Katz, Vice President of Strategy and Public Policy for Asia Pacific at Circle, alongside Tether executives Ploy Boonyavee and Eddy Christian Ng. Other participating organizations included StraitsX, Ripple, BitGo, Anchorage Digital, Canton, Avalanche, the Solana Foundation, Xapo Bank, Token X, and AWS, covering topics ranging from custody and payments to tokenization and AI integration.

In addition to the main conference sessions, SEABW 2026 hosted four invitation-only roundtable discussions focused on RWA tokenization and settlement infrastructure, commercialization of tokenized assets, enterprise applications of AI and Web3 technologies, and stablecoin settlement systems. The event also distinguished itself from traditional industry conferences through a live performance by K-pop group tripleS, managed by Modhaus. The group’s blockchain-based fan governance model enables NFT holders to participate in decision-making processes, demonstrating how entertainment and Web3 technologies are increasingly intersecting across Asia.

Another major highlight was the SEABW AI Hackathon, designed around the theme “Solve a real-world problem around you with AI.” A total of 92 teams from Southeast Asia and other regions participated in the competition. The top award went to BEBRIDGE for its project RWANDA, an AI-driven evaluation platform that reviews RWA audit reports and assigns trustworthiness ratings to tokens, helping retail investors better understand potential de-pegging risks.

The conference attracted support from organizations spanning the entire institutional blockchain ecosystem. Regional sponsors included SCBX, SCB 10X, InnovestX, Bitkub, Bitazza Thailand, and Token X. International partners featured Tether, the Solana Foundation, Xapo Bank, AWS, SOOHO.IO, AriqoX, Tiger Research, and StayGold.

Ruam Siratanapanta, Head of Digital Asset Business at SCBX, stated that SCBX was pleased to continue its partnership with Hashed and ShardLab in supporting Southeast Asia Blockchain Week. He noted that the region is entering a stage where infrastructure development, regulatory progress, and practical digital asset applications are beginning to align, positioning the event as an important meeting point for institutions, policymakers, and builders shaping the future of the industry.

ShardLab CEO Hojin Kim added that few regions are experiencing simultaneous growth in both regulatory certainty and institutional adoption. He emphasized Bangkok’s strategic role at the center of this transformation and explained that as AI and digital assets increasingly merge into a unified agentic economy, fostering direct collaboration between regulators, institutions, and innovators is essential to ensuring the next stage of adoption develops through cooperation rather than fragmentation.

HashKey Group, part of HashKey Holdings Limited, has announced a preliminary agreement to form a strategic alliance with ANAP Holdings Inc. (TSE: 3189), a publicly traded company in Tokyo and among Japan’s leading Bitcoin treasury firms. The companies aim to finalize formal agreements by the end of April 2026.

HashKey Japan’s Lending Service, an institutional-level wealth management solution built on HashKey Capital’s asset management and fund platform, will play a central role in this partnership. Through this collaboration, HashKey Japan will work with ANAP to deliver Bitcoin lending services, allowing ANAP to more effectively manage and optimize a portion of its Bitcoin reserves via a structured lending approach.

As of April 15, 2026, ANAP holds approximately 1,417 BTC, placing it among the top three publicly listed Bitcoin-holding companies in Japan. As part of its broader ambition to evolve into a Bitcoin-focused ecosystem company, ANAP is exploring ways not only to hold digital assets but also to generate returns from them. This partnership represents a significant step in HashKey Group’s strategy to expand its digital asset financial services presence in Japan, with HashKey Japan acting as the local operational hub. Initially centered on Bitcoin lending, the collaboration may extend into wider areas such as digital asset management, treasury optimization, and on-chain financial services.

By utilizing HashKey’s institutional-grade infrastructure and risk management expertise, the partnership is designed to help ANAP advance its strategy of storing, utilizing, earning from, and promoting Bitcoin. It also highlights HashKey Group’s ongoing commitment to the Japanese market, where it is building a localized platform to offer trading, asset management, and tokenization services aligned with regulatory requirements.

This collaboration with ANAP marks an important milestone in executing that vision, showcasing how institutional digital asset solutions can assist publicly listed companies in managing and generating value from Bitcoin treasury holdings. Both organizations are currently working through the necessary review processes to ensure full regulatory compliance ahead of a formal announcement and service launch. Looking ahead, HashKey Group and ANAP intend to explore broader cooperation in digital asset management and the wider Bitcoin ecosystem, fostering innovation and institutional adoption within Japan.

Metalpha Technology Holding Limited, a global provider of blockchain and digital trading technology solutions, has announced that it has entered into a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with Exos Financial LLC, a New York–based technology-focused financial services firm, and BlockchainK2 Corp. (TSXV: BITK), a publicly listed Canadian blockchain holding company. The three companies plan to establish a joint venture to deliver compliant, institutional-grade digital asset services, primarily targeting clients in the United States.

This planned joint venture brings together three complementary organizations to meet increasing demand for crypto-related financial services in the US market. The collaboration will combine Metalpha’s expertise in cryptocurrency derivatives and liquidity solutions, Exos Financial’s regulated investment banking and asset management capabilities led by former Credit Suisse CEO Brady Dougan, and BlockchainK2’s tokenization and fund distribution technologies. Together, they aim to bridge traditional finance with the digital asset ecosystem.

According to the MOU, the new business will focus on serving institutional clients in the US through three main areas: customized OTC derivatives and risk management solutions for institutions and miners, the development of digital asset investment strategies such as crypto relative value approaches, and securities-linked products that offer exposure to digital assets.

Adrian Wang, CEO of Metalpha, stated that the agreement marks an important step in the company’s global growth strategy. He highlighted that partnering with Exos and BlockchainK2 will enable Metalpha to enter the US market with a compliant institutional offering while leveraging Exos’s market expertise and BlockchainK2’s technology infrastructure to deliver its derivative products to US clients.

Brady Dougan, Founder and CEO of Exos Financial, noted that integrating technology with regulatory compliance is central to the future of finance. He emphasized that the partnership will expand Exos’s institutional platform into digital assets, providing clients with advanced strategies supported by institutional-grade infrastructure.

Sergei Stetsenko, CEO of BlockchainK2, added that the collaboration combines Metalpha’s trading capabilities, Exos’s institutional experience, and BlockchainK2’s technology ecosystem to create a strong platform for growth, addressing key challenges faced by US institutions seeking digital asset exposure.