The Korea Web3 Policy Promotion Alliance Preparatory Committee was officially launched, alongside the kickoff of the 2026 GWDC Global Developers Conference in Seoul. Justin Sun, founder of TRON, delivered a keynote titled 'A New Era for Asian Web3: Improving Regulatory Systems, Empowering Infrastructure, and Deepening International Cooperation.' He outlined global regulatory trends, TRON's infrastructure strategy, AI deployments, and the need for cross-border policy collaboration.
Regulation shifts from 'exploration' to 'implementation,' stablecoin market jumps over $1 trillion in half a year
Sun noted that over the past year, global Web3 regulation has moved rapidly from the 'exploration and design' phase to 'implementation.' The U.S. passed a stablecoin bill and established a strategic Bitcoin reserve; the SEC and CFTC under new leadership are generally crypto-friendly. The EU's MiCA regulation is now fully enforced. Hong Kong rolled out a stablecoin regulatory framework and began issuing initial licenses. Singapore and the UAE continue to attract crypto startups. This regulatory clarity has released significant market dividends: the stablecoin market grew from 206 billion to over 320 billion U.S. dollars. Tokenized assets and AI-blockchain convergence are also seeing explosive growth.
However, Sun warned that regulation is a double-edged sword for innovation. Overly cautious policies can stifle innovation. 'If we only emphasize safety and ignore innovation momentum, the currently leading Asian Web3 industry could lose global competitiveness,' he said.
Earlier this month, the SEC moved to drop all charges filed in 2023 against Sun personally, the TRON Foundation, and the BitTorrent Foundation. This follows the SEC's dismissal of lawsuits against Binance, Coinbase, and Uniswap, marking another milestone in crypto compliance.
TRON joins Linux Foundation AI Council alongside OpenAI, JPMorgan
Sun highlighted TRON's latest progress. Since its founding in 2017, the TRON network has accumulated over 370 million registered accounts, with daily on-chain transfer volumes between 20 and 30 billion U.S. dollars. USDT on TRON consistently ranks among the highest globally in transaction share, providing low-cost, high-efficiency settlement for cross-border payments and DeFi.
On AI, Sun announced that TRON has joined the Linux Foundation's Agentic AI Council as a Gold Member, seating alongside OpenAI, Anthropic, Circle, and JPMorgan. 'The next wave of digital payments will be driven by machines. We are ready for it,' he said.
Hong Kong-Korea Web3 policy alliance formed to prevent 'regulatory arbitrage'
Sun argued that Web3 is inherently borderless, and a single country's framework can lead to regulatory arbitrage or ecosystem fragmentation. Cross-regional cooperation allows lawmakers to share best practices and harmonize standards for stablecoins and custody. Hong Kong's pragmatic framework and Korea's open attitude toward Web3 serve as a model for Asia-Pacific cooperation. Sun also noted that since 2024, TRON and partners established the T3 Financial Crime Task Force, freezing over 300 million U.S. dollars in illicit funds across five continents, setting a precedent for industry security compliance.