Shinhan Investment Corp Emphasizes Similarities Between Tokenization Market and Early ETFs

The analysis suggests that the tokenization market, which has begun with existing assets and institutional investors, has a structure similar to that of the early exchange-traded funds (ETFs). Hong Je-seok, a researcher at Shinhan Investment Corp, presented this at the 'Block Festa 2026' held in Yeouido, Seoul, on the 1st, arguing that tokenized products should be operated through collaboration with asset management companies and banks, focusing on issuance and distribution by securities firms. As of September, the outstanding balance of stablecoins was $302.8 billion, while on-chain real-world assets (RWA) amounted to $38.86 billion, accounting for only 0.0056% of global assets. Researcher Hong compared the current tokenization market to the first ETF launched in 1993, explaining that initial demand led to settlement and remittance. He divided the role of the securities industry into six categories: issuance, distribution and trading, custody, management and asset management, settlement, and infrastructure, emphasizing that issuance and distribution are extensions of the core business. Shinhan Investment Corp is currently working on a project to list Korean government bonds on a public blockchain overseas and is establishing a tokenized securities issuance and distribution system domestically. Related legislation is set to take effect on February 4 of next year.

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