中国P2P稳定币钱包增长43倍，东亚1.2万亿美元市场无视监管

East Asia's five major crypto economies reach US$1.2 trillion, and there is a significant gap between supervision and reality.

Currently, the total size of the crypto economy in the five major markets in East Asia is approximately US$1.2 trillion. However, in these markets, the rules on paper are very different from the actual market conditions: In some capital cities, cryptocurrencies are licensed businesses, while in other regions trading is prohibited. Do existing encryption regulations match actual transactions in East Asia? The Chainalysis report released today reveals the huge gap between the region's existing crypto regulatory systems and actual trading models.

report shows that this gap is most obvious in mainland China . Although the country has banned relevant trading activities for many years, Chainalysis estimates that China 's crypto economy is still no less than US$176.3 billion.

China Mainland: stablecoin transfers have surged, and users view them as working capital.

The most obvious sign of divergence is that the number of independent wallets sending point-to-point (P2P) stablecoin transfers in China increased 43 times between the first quarter of 2024 and the second quarter of 2026. During the statistical window from July 2025 to June 2026, Chainalysis tracked US$104.1 billion in funds flowing through 18.1 million self-custodial stablecoins transfers.

In addition, China The market turnover rate is 33.2 times per year, more than three times the global average of 9.3 times. The company pointed out that this data shows that users view stablecoins as "operating cash" far more than their function as a "store of value."

Domestic P2P transfers accounted for 59.1% of total encryption activity in China , about 3.5 times that of a year ago. In March 2026 alone, this category added US$4.9 billion in new traffic.

Hong Kong: The most institutionalized, but the trading venue is not yet in place

Hong Kong has the largest institutionalized crypto market in the region, with a scale of US$192.2 billion. About 16% of the money flowing into services goes to institutional platforms, which is almost three times the proportion of any neighboring region. Of this 16% of the funds, 85% went to custody providers, prime brokers and market makers.

Hong Kong also absorbed nearly US$24 billion in business-to-business (B2B) traffic, and institutional platform revenue increased by 87% in one year, ranking first in East Asia. On April 10, 2026, the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) issued the first batch of stablecoin issuance licenses to HSBC and Anchorpoint, backed by Standard Chartered Bank, HKT and Animoca Brands Ventures. Previously, the two companies were selected from 36 applicants under the law that took effect in August 2025.

However, the two companies are currently unable to trade the tokens they issue because Hong Kong has not yet prepared a trading venue, trading pair or launch date. A bill aimed at licensing virtual asset trading platforms is expected to be reviewed later this year. In addition,A notice issued in February by seven institutions including the People's Bank of China's also banned unauthorized stablecoins that anchor RMB at home and abroad.

South Korea: Retail-led, focusing on AI tokens and tax delay controversy

South Korea became the region's leader with a scale of US$449.1 billion, an increase of 12.3% from the previous period. This growth was driven by a 16.3% growth in the exchanges sector and an additional $51.1 billion in exchange-related traffic. South Korea's market is dominated by retail investors, and Chainalysis pointed out that retail traders are more likely to invest in artificial intelligence (AI)-related tokens than other categories.

Currently, retail traders are closely watching a tax policy that is scheduled to take effect on January 1, 2027. The tax rate is 22%(including 20% national tax and 2% local tax) and applies to gains exceeding 2.5 million won. Although the tax has been delayed many times, independent lawmaker Han Dong-hun is trying to delay it for another two years. His argument is that authorities cannot track transactions after assets leave domestic exchanges. A petition calling for a postponement of the tax has also received the 50,000 signatures needed for parliamentary review.

Japan : Decentralized exchanges (DEX) lead the way, and high tax rates remain until 2027

in Japan In the crypto market valued at $228.3 billion, decentralized exchanges (DEX) accounted for 34.5% of service activity. This proportion is the highest of any mature market in the region dominated by centralized exchanges. Chainalysis found that use of DEX has more than tripled since 2022. At the same time, 65.7% of the exchange amount is between US$10 and US$1000.

Currently, crypto gains are taxed as miscellaneous income at a rate of up to approximately 55%. This policy will remain in effect until the law in the Financial Instruments and Exchanges Act that reclassifies crypto as a financial product takes effect in fiscal year 2027. Even so, the lower flat 20% tax rate will not apply until January 1, 2028.