Asia Morning Briefing: Crypto’s Next Breakout Will Come From Infrastructure, Not Narratives, Hashed Says

Core Insights - The crypto market is transitioning from speculative narratives to structured economic systems, with 2026 expected to mark a significant shift as stablecoins and AI agents reshape investable value [2][3][7] Group 1: Market Transition - Hashed's Protocol Economy 2026 report highlights Asia as a key region for this transition, showcasing regulated stablecoin pilots and early AI agent deployments [3][6] - The firm emphasizes that the investable frontier is now based on structural layers where payments, credit, and settlement are integrated into programmable systems [4][6] - This shift is seen as a correction from the previous two years of excess liquidity that masked real usage within the crypto stack [5] Group 2: Investment Focus - Hashed identifies stablecoins, on-chain credit, and automation infrastructure as the primary categories for investment, indicating a trend towards sustained activity rather than speculative spikes [6][7] - The firm plans to concentrate capital on projects with real user engagement and on-chain activity, moving away from momentum-driven narratives [4][5] - AI is expected to play a crucial role in accelerating this transition by enabling programmatic transaction management and liquidity routing [7] Group 3: Market Movement - Bitcoin is currently trading around $92,000, having failed to maintain a rise towards $94,000, suggesting a consolidation within a low-liquidity range between $85,000 and $95,000 [8]