Southeast Asia’s blockchain companies have raised $680 million in 2026, more than double the total for last year, even as the number of completed funding rounds has fallen sharply.

According to a new report from market intelligence platform Tracxn, funding has increased by about 113% from the $319 million raised throughout 2025. Deal volume moved in the opposite direction, falling to 25 rounds from 46 during the previous year.

The gap between capital raised and completed rounds points to larger checks going into a smaller group of established companies. One transaction had an outsized effect: Crypto.com secured $400 million in a Series D round backed by Citadel Securities in July, accounting for nearly 60% of all blockchain funding recorded in Southeast Asia this year.

Without the Crypto.com investment, the remaining 24 rounds brought in about $280 million. Tracxn’s data therefore shows that the increase in total funding has not been spread evenly across the region’s blockchain companies.

Deal activity has also moved far below its 2022 level. Investors completed 206 rounds that year, more than eight times the number recorded so far in 2026, while total funding reached a record $2.2 billion.

Southeast Asia blockchain funding remains below its 2022 peak

Annual investment dropped from $2.2 billion in 2022 to $386 million in 2023, according to Tracxn. Funding recovered to $804 million in 2024 before declining to $319 million in 2025.

Although the $680 million raised this year has already passed the 2025 total, it remains about 69% below the 2022 record. The number of rounds has also continued to fall, leaving the industry with more capital than last year but fewer companies receiving it.

Crypto financial services have collected most of the available money. Companies in the segment raised $498 million through 19 rounds, with funding up 48.4% from the corresponding period last year, the report said.

Tokenization platforms ranked second with $114 million, while platforms used to develop decentralized applications received $77 million. Tracxn’s sector classifications indicate that investors have favored exchanges, payments companies, and other financial infrastructure providers over less established blockchain projects.

Institutional activity outside Southeast Asia offers additional context for the interest in financial and tokenization companies. As crypto.news reported in August, the Depository Trust and Clearing Corporation has been developing a tokenization service with more than 50 financial firms in the United States, while JPMorgan, Citigroup, Bank of America, and Wells Fargo have been working on tokenized deposit infrastructure.

The U.S. developments do not form part of Tracxn’s Southeast Asian funding total. However, they show how established financial companies are putting capital and technical resources into many of the same business areas receiving investment in the region, including settlement, tokenized assets, and blockchain-based payments.

Most blockchain companies remain below Series A

Funding becomes much harder to secure after the earliest stages of company development, Tracxn’s figures show. Among 3,957 blockchain companies tracked across Southeast Asia, 1,323 have received some form of equity investment, but only 167 have reached Series A or a later stage.

Just 50 companies have advanced to Series B, while 14 have completed a Series C round. Four companies have reached Series D or moved beyond it, including Crypto.com following its $400 million financing.

The figures leave about 87% of equity-funded companies below Series A. Even among businesses that have attracted investors, only around 13% have progressed to a stage where larger institutional rounds usually become available.

Later-stage concentration also appears in the size of the year’s leading transaction. Crypto.com’s round was larger than the combined $280 million raised through every other reported deal in 2026, giving one mature exchange more funding than the rest of the market combined.

Southeast Asia has still produced six blockchain unicorns, according to Tracxn. The group includes digital asset bank Sygnum, Thai exchange Bitkub, blockchain gaming company Sky Mavis, and crypto financial services firm Amber Group.

Sygnum reached a valuation above $1 billion after raising $58 million in early 2025. The company operates from Switzerland and Singapore and provides regulated digital asset services to institutional clients, including custody, trading, and tokenization products.

Singapore controls most regional blockchain investment

Singapore accounts for 82.5% of Southeast Asia’s cumulative $6.2 billion in blockchain funding, equal to approximately $5.1 billion, according to the report. The city-state is also home to 2,285 of the companies tracked by Tracxn, or nearly 58% of the regional total.

Jakarta ranks as the next-largest funding center but accounts for only 3% of cumulative investment. Its share is roughly $186 million, leaving a substantial difference between Singapore and every other city in the region.

Recent company activity has reinforced Singapore’s position. Coinbase announced in July that it plans to expand its Singapore workforce from about 150 employees to approximately 200 by the end of 2026, citing institutional demand and tokenization among its areas of focus.

Singapore’s regulatory structure has also supported the development of licensed digital asset businesses. The Monetary Authority of Singapore introduced frameworks for tokenized fixed-income products and investment funds in November 2024 under Project Guardian, an initiative involving more than 40 financial institutions, industry groups and policymakers across seven jurisdictions.

By the time the frameworks were announced, Project Guardian had completed more than 15 trials involving six currencies and several financial products. MAS also formed the Guardian Wholesale Network with Citi, HSBC, Standard Chartered, Schroders and UOB to support commercial uses of tokenized assets.

Acquisitions outnumber blockchain IPOs

Exit activity has leaned heavily toward acquisitions rather than public listings. Tracxn counted 43 acquisitions across Southeast Asia’s blockchain industry but only four initial public offerings.

Among the 2026 transactions, Japan’s SBI Holdings completed its acquisition of Coinhako after receiving approval from MAS in July. The deal included a capital injection and purchases of shares from existing investors, although SBI did not disclose the stake size, investment amount, or valuation.

Coinhako, founded in 2014, operates under a Major Payment Institution licence from MAS. SBI said the exchange would provide a regulated base for digital asset services involving stablecoins, tokenized products, cross-border trading and on-chain finance between Japan and Southeast Asia.

Tracxn also listed Bybit’s purchase of Indonesian crypto platform NOBI among the sector’s acquisitions this year. The two transactions added to the region’s 43 recorded takeovers, compared with four blockchain companies that have completed IPOs.

AMC Entertainment CEO Adam Aron has publicly challenged Robinhood’s tokenized stock offerings, calling them “outrageous” and stating AMC has no affiliation with the platform’s products. Aron said Robinhood will face an investigation by outside securities counsel.

Aron’s comments add to a growing wave of attention directed at tokenized stock products—blockchain-based instruments designed to track the value of traditional equities. The dispute arrives amid earlier disruptions where crypto platforms pulled back from tokenized IPO campaigns, underscoring how legal and operational questions continue to surround the sector.

Key takeaways

• Adam Aron says AMC has no affiliation with Robinhood’s tokenized stock offerings and called them “outrageous.”
• Aron said Robinhood will request scrutiny from its outside securities counsel and suggested restrictions may apply to US and other investors.
• Robinhood’s tokenized stock offerings are described as not registered under US securities laws, according to Aron’s remarks.
• The broader scrutiny of tokenized stocks follows recent cancellations tied to tokenized IPO access, including SpaceX-related campaigns.

Aron challenges Robinhood’s tokenized AMC exposure

In a Friday post on X, Adam Aron criticized Robinhood’s tokenized stock offering that provides economic exposure to AMC shares. Aron said the company has “no affiliation” with the product and characterized the offering as “outrageous.” He added that Robinhood’s outside securities counsel would investigate the matter.

Aron also indicated that the tokens may not be available to US investors and that they are subject to restrictions in other jurisdictions, citing Canada, Switzerland and the UK.

The remarks are notable not only for their directness, but because they frame the dispute as a regulatory and compliance issue rather than a simple branding or commercial disagreement. If tokenized securities are marketed or structured in ways that investors perceive as linked to the underlying issuer, those concerns can quickly escalate.

For context, tokenized stock products typically aim to mirror the price movement of conventional equities through blockchain-based representations. However, Aron’s comments highlight how questions about registration status, investor eligibility, and issuer affiliation can become central to the legality and reputational impact of these offerings.

Robinhood responds by seeking specifics

Robinhood co-founder and CEO Vlad Tenev responded on X, asking Aron to share his exact concerns tied to the tokenized offering. The platform did not issue a broader public statement in response to the criticism.

Cointelegraph reported that it reached out to Robinhood for comment regarding both Aron’s claims and the regulatory status of its tokenized stock offerings.

That back-and-forth illustrates a recurring tension in tokenized securities: traditional executives may view such instruments as potentially misleading or insufficiently authorized, while token issuers and platforms often argue they are structured under specific legal frameworks. The next step—whether Aron’s concerns translate into formal findings or enforcement action—will likely determine how far this dispute spreads.

Tokenized stock scrutiny follows past operational pullbacks

The Aron–Robinhood episode arrives as tokenized stocks have faced renewed scrutiny in the wake of earlier market disruptions. Earlier in June, some crypto exchanges canceled their tokenized SpaceX IPO allocations and promised refunds.

According to Cointelegraph reporting referenced in the article, platforms including Bybit, Binance, Bitget Wallet and MEXC canceled their tokenized SpaceX IPO campaigns after SpaceX went public on the Nasdaq. Several participants blamed the inability of Kraken-owned xStocks to deliver the underlying assets.

While that SpaceX incident was framed around delivery and execution—rather than issuer affiliation—the underlying theme is similar: tokenized offerings depend on complex relationships between blockchain intermediaries and traditional market infrastructure. When any link breaks, user trust and regulatory scrutiny tend to intensify.

In that light, Aron’s insistence on no affiliation and his emphasis on securities counsel investigation reflect how tokenized products can trigger fast-moving reactions from the companies whose stock they reference, even if platforms believe the economic exposure is properly handled.

Robinhood’s tokenization push has expanded beyond debt-like instruments

Robinhood’s tokenized equities initiative did not appear overnight. The first generation of Robinhood stock tokens launched in July 2026 as tokenized debt securities issued by Jersey-based Robinhood Assets, distributed as ERC-20 tokens. Those tokens were designed to provide economic exposure to underlying assets such as US stocks and exchange-traded funds.

Robinhood has also been building infrastructure to support tokenized assets. In February, the company launched a public testnet for Robinhood Chain, an Ethereum layer-2 network built using Arbitrum technology intended to host tokenized assets.

Further expansion has been reported in prior coverage. In October 2025, Robinhood shared plans to tokenize nearly 500 US stocks and ETFs on Arbitrum. And in July 2026, Bernstein analysts raised their price target on Robinhood Markets, arguing that a next phase of growth would be driven by tokenized equities and prediction markets rather than traditional crypto trading.

Taken together, the sector-wide moment suggests that tokenized securities are moving from experimental phases toward broader rollout—while regulators, issuers, and exchanges continue to test how these products should be structured, marketed, and delivered.

For investors and market participants, Aron’s comments serve as a reminder that tokenization does not eliminate the legal and compliance layers that govern securities markets. Even if a platform believes a product is compliant under one framework, issuer objections can still raise practical questions about authorization, disclosures, and eligibility for different investor regions.

Readers should watch whether Robinhood clarifies the precise legal basis for its tokenized stock offerings, and whether Aron’s complaint leads to formal regulatory engagement or other enforcement steps. Just as importantly, the industry will be looking for whether prior delivery-related issues in tokenized IPO campaigns repeat in other tokenized equity products—or whether platforms tighten operational and compliance controls to reduce the risk of abrupt cancellations.

South Korea’s Financial Services Commission (FSC) has outlined a three-phase plan to build the legal and technical foundation for issuing tokenized securities covering assets such as stocks, bonds, and funds. The roadmap is designed to bring tokenization into the country’s existing capital markets framework rather than treating it as a separate, unregulated activity.

In a press release published Friday, the FSC said tokenized securities will gain formal legal recognition as digitized forms of securities once an update to the Act on Electronic Registration of Stocks and Bonds takes effect on Feb. 4, 2027. The implementation schedule is closely tied to a broader roll-out of amended capital markets and electronic securities laws.

Key takeaways

• Legal status begins Feb. 4, 2027, when an amendment to the Act on Electronic Registration of Stocks and Bonds takes effect for tokenized securities.
• Phase 1 (from recognition) covers institutional money market funds, bonds, unlisted stocks, and fractional investment securities.
• Phase 2 broadens scope by extending tokenization to all publicly offered securities.
• Phase 3 targets onchain settlement by pursuing onchain payments linked to stablecoins.
• The FSC will coordinate with the Korea Securities Depository (KSD) to build the necessary tokenization infrastructure.

What South Korea’s FSC is changing in 2027

The FSC’s roadmap hinges on a legal shift: tokenized securities will be treated as digitized versions of traditional securities under South Korea’s electronic registration framework. According to the FSC, the change is expected to take effect on Feb. 4, 2027, after the relevant statutory update becomes operational.

Once this happens, tokenized instruments will not merely be “technology-layered securities.” Instead, they will be recognized within the legal system governing stock and bond registration—an important distinction for issuers, investors, and intermediaries who need clarity on rights, governance, and compliance.

For market participants, legal recognition is often the prerequisite for scalable issuance and broader participation. Without it, tokenized products typically face uncertainty around transferability, custody, and the enforcement of investor protections. The FSC’s plan aims to close those gaps by integrating tokenized securities into the capital markets regime.

Phase 1: recognition for a limited set of products

In the first stage, the FSC said tokenized securities will receive legal recognition across several categories, including institutional money market funds, bonds, unlisted stocks, and fractional investment securities. This sequencing matters because it starts with markets where regulators can more directly define operational boundaries while the infrastructure and oversight processes are still being established.

The FSC also tied the roadmap to the planned implementation of two legislative components: an amended Capital Markets Act and an Electronic Securities Act, which together form what the FSC describes as the country’s first tokenized securities framework. Earlier in the process, the FSC had indicated it was preparing detailed tokenized securities rules aimed at bringing tokenized securities under South Korea’s capital markets framework in 2027, an approach noted in earlier reporting (see Cointelegraph coverage of the regulator’s May statements).

The practical question for Phase 1 participants will be how tokenization is handled end-to-end—issuance, registration, transfers, and custody—especially for instruments like fractional investment securities where the unit of ownership may differ from legacy models.

Phase 2 and Phase 3: expanding issuance and testing new payment rails

Phase two of the FSC roadmap is set to expand tokenization to all publicly offered securities. This is a significant step up from the Phase 1 list because it implies broader availability of tokenized products to retail and institutional participants under the same umbrella rules.

However, the FSC did not assign a specific public date for the transition to Phase 2 in the press release. Instead, it said it will determine the timing after submitting and refining subordinate regulations.

The third phase introduces an additional technological ambition: onchain payments linked to stablecoins. In other words, the FSC is not only aiming to tokenize the asset layer (securities issuance and ownership records), but also to modernize parts of the settlement process. Stablecoins are referenced here as the linkage for onchain payment settlement, reflecting the regulator’s attempt to align tokenized securities workflows with digital payment mechanisms.

That said, major implementation details—such as which stablecoin frameworks (if any) would be considered, how payment flows would be controlled, and what oversight would apply—are not specified in the release. Market watchers will likely focus on the subordinate rule revisions that the FSC plans to propose after consultation with relevant stakeholders.

Regulatory coordination and what investors should monitor next

The FSC said it will work with the Korea Securities Depository (KSD) to develop the necessary tokenization infrastructure before the roadmap’s initiation. That coordination is a practical signal: tokenized securities can only scale if the core market plumbing—especially registration and transfer processes—is adapted to handle tokenized formats reliably.

Following the roadmap announcement, the FSC also indicated it plans to propose revisions to relevant subordinate regulations by the end of September and then decide the timeline for phases two and three. For investors and platform builders, that regulatory and technical rulemaking period is likely to be the most consequential window for understanding how compliance will work in practice.

It’s also worth placing the roadmap in the context of South Korea’s wider regulatory movement around tokenized assets. In May, the FSC said it would release detailed tokenized securities rules in 2027 to bring tokenized securities under the capital markets framework, according to earlier coverage (see Cointelegraph). Separately, in April, South Korea’s Ministry of Economy and Finance announced a pilot project involving tokenized deposits to execute government operational spending, with a full rollout targeted for the fourth quarter of 2026 (see Cointelegraph).

Taken together, the developments point to a regulator that is treating tokenization as a structured modernization of finance—starting with legal recognition, then expanding product coverage, and finally testing settlement innovations that could connect onchain activity with regulated payment processes.

For now, the key watchpoints are the end-of-September subordinate regulation revisions, the precise operational requirements that will govern tokenization infrastructure with KSD, and how Phase 3 will handle stablecoin-linked onchain payments in a way that preserves investor protections and settlement finality.

The National Sheriffs’ Association (NSA) has withdrawn its earlier opposition to the Digital Asset Market Clarity (CLARITY) Act, saying in a Thursday letter that its stance is now “neutral.” The development comes ahead of a potential Senate vote later this month when Congress returns to session.

In the letter to Senate Majority Leader John Thune and Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, the NSA pointed to the complexity of the legislative process and the “significant work undertaken” by lawmakers, the Administration, and stakeholders to address “legal, regulatory, and enforcement considerations” tied to the bill. NSA leadership said the group believes it is more constructive to let the legislative process continue as Congress seeks to build a clearer regulatory structure for digital assets.

Key takeaways

• The NSA has changed its position on the CLARITY Act from opposition to “neutral,” signaling less resistance to the bill’s advancement.
• The association’s earlier concern centered on amendments that would exempt crypto mixers from multiple registration requirements.
• House passage in July 2025 has been followed by multiple Senate hurdles, including committee progress and continued debate among lawmakers and stakeholders.
• Senate leaders have taken procedural steps toward a vote, with Thune filing a motion to hold cloture after senators return.

NSA shifts from opposition to neutrality

The NSA’s updated position was articulated by NSA president Troy Wellman alongside CEO and executive director Justin Smith. They said the association is no longer pushing against the measure at this stage, arguing that the most appropriate path is to “step back” and allow Congress to proceed to establish “a clear, effective, and much needed regulatory framework.”

This change represents a notable recalibration from the NSA’s earlier messaging. Previously, the group had expressed “significant concerns” about specific CLARITY provisions—particularly amendments involving crypto mixers and how they could affect registration obligations.

What the NSA previously objected to: crypto mixer exemptions

According to the NSA’s earlier letter, the association’s opposition was driven by provisions it believed could limit law enforcement tools used to trace illicit activity and recover victims’ funds. In that prior stance, the NSA argued that exempting crypto mixers from many registration requirements could “[impair] law enforcement’s ability to trace transactions and digital assets, and recover victims’ money.”

In July, Sheriff Jim Skinner—speaking in a video posted by the NSA—also criticized the framing of the bill, stating, “The CLARITY Act protects the crypto industry, not the public.” Earlier coverage and the Senate Banking Committee correspondence cited by the NSA indicate that mixer-related language was at the heart of the dispute.

While the Thursday letter does not detail which provisions have been addressed or how the group views the bill’s current draft, the shift to neutrality suggests the NSA is at least willing to allow continued consideration rather than maintain active resistance.

CLARITY’s path through Congress remains contested

The CLARITY Act passed the US House of Representatives in July 2025 and has encountered obstacles since being sent to the Senate. While Senate committees—including the agriculture and banking committees—passed versions of the bill in 2026, the measure has continued to face pushback and uncertainty from multiple groups and lawmakers.

Debates described around the legislation have reportedly included issues beyond enforcement logistics, such as stablecoin-related rewards, tokenized equities, and concerns about potential conflicts of interest involving President Donald Trump and his family. These sticking points have kept the bill from reaching a final, unified Senate outcome even after committee progress.

As Congress nears its return to session, procedural moves have also signaled an effort to bring the bill to the floor. Before going on break, Thune reportedly filed a motion to hold a cloture vote on the measure on Sept. 15 once senators return from state work periods—an action that typically aims to limit extended debate and move legislation forward.

Regulators signal they could act even without legislation

Even as CLARITY awaits a Senate path to final passage, US regulators have indicated that crypto oversight may not wait indefinitely for congressional action. Earlier reporting noted that Trump publicly pushed for passage alongside the heads of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), as well as representatives from digital asset companies.

According to earlier coverage, SEC Chair Paul Atkins and CFTC Chair Michael Selig—both nominated by Trump—have signaled that their agencies would continue efforts to address crypto regulation if Congress is unable to pass a market structure bill.

This matters for market participants because it reframes timing and certainty. A shift in the NSA’s position reduces one vocal source of resistance, but it does not remove other policy debates reportedly surrounding stablecoin rewards, tokenized assets, and broader governance concerns. Meanwhile, regulator willingness to proceed without CLARITY could mean the industry faces parallel developments: legislative negotiations in the Senate alongside rulemaking and enforcement direction from the agencies.

As the Senate calendar firms up, readers should watch whether the bill’s most contested provisions—particularly those tied to enforcement and registration—change between committee language and the final text heading to a vote, and whether additional stakeholders follow the NSA’s example by shifting their stance ahead of the chamber’s next steps.