Chainalysis report shows South Korea led East Asia crypto activity at $449.1B, driven by retail trading and AI-token demand, with Hong Kong seeing stronger institutional adoption.
AI & Agents ·
According to a Chainalysis report, South Korea dominated East Asia's crypto market during the period from July 2025 to June 2026, recording $449.1 billion in activity. Japan followed with $228.3 billion, Hong Kong with $192.2 billion, mainland China with $176.3 billion, and Taiwan with $140.4 billion.
South Korea's leading position reflected the region's retail trading patterns, with AI-related tokens becoming the most sought thematic asset class in the market. The composition of activity differed by jurisdiction: in Hong Kong, institutional platforms represented 16% of inflows to crypto services—a figure notably higher than institutional participation in other regional markets.
The report captures a snapshot of East Asia's crypto ecosystem during a twelve-month window but does not provide detail on whether these patterns have persisted beyond June 2026 or how regulatory or market shifts might alter the regional hierarchy.