Blockchain Becomes Financial Infrastructure

a16z Crypto's Guy Wuollet sees blockchain evolving beyond trading to become financial infrastructure. Speaking at the a16z Crypto Korea Summit in Seoul, he identified three key investment themes: financial-market infrastructure, stablecoin-based digital finance, and new exchanges.

Wuollet said that trading in traditional assets on-chain is expanding, with products such as perpetual futures and prediction markets growing in popularity. He also noted that artificial intelligence could become a new user of this financial infrastructure, potentially leading to direct transactions between AI agents.

The introduction of a won stablecoin has also been discussed in South Korea, and Wuollet expressed optimism about its potential impact. He cited the country's large conglomerates as opportunities for collaboration with new startups, and mentioned that some companies backed by a16z have their largest user base in South Korea.