Financial institutions across Asia-Pacific are moving aggressively to build digital asset infrastructure, with custody and tokenized securities emerging as key priorities, according to 2026 survey report “The Financial Grid” conducted by digital asset infrastructure company Fireblocks.
The report surveyed more than 600 C-suite and senior decision-makers at financial institutions and corporations globally, examining how institutions are integrating digital assets into existing financial systems.
Globally, 88 percent of financial institutions said they have committed or plan to commit budget to digital asset infrastructure in 2026. However, only 16 percent have reached production, highlighting a gap between investment and operational capability.
APAC institutions were among the earliest to allocate funding. According to the report, 62 percent of APAC financial institutions had already committed budget for digital asset infrastructure before 2026 began, higher than 27 percent in North America, 50 percent in Europe, 41 percent in Latin America, and 40 percent in Africa and the Middle East.
The region also leads in external pilot activity. About 46 percent of APAC institutions are conducting external pilots with clients, while another 23 percent are already operating in production environments. Combined, 69 percent of institutions in the region are either live or running client-facing tests.
The report found that regulatory concerns are less significant in APAC than in other regions. Around 97 percent of institutions in the region expect the regulatory outlook for digital assets to be favorable or very favorable. Only 39 percent cited regulatory or legal uncertainty as a constraint, the lowest level globally.
Instead, institutions identified operational readiness and internal expertise as the main barriers to expansion. About 62 percent of APAC respondents said operational risk and readiness are major concerns, while 60 percent pointed to limited internal expertise and skills.
Despite those internal challenges, APAC institutions appear focused on scaling infrastructure. Fiat on- and off-ramps were identified by 65 percent of respondents as the factor most likely to accelerate expansion, followed by institutional-grade infrastructure and operational support at 48 percent.
Custody emerged as the region’s top digital asset priority. According to the survey, 84 percent of APAC institutions ranked digital asset custody as a high or core strategic priority, above the global average of 79 percent.
The region also led in plans for tokenized securities and tokenized money market funds. Around 68 percent of APAC institutions said they plan to use tokenized securities in live environments in 2026, compared with a global average of 52 percent. Tokenized money market funds were cited by 58% of respondents in the region, above the global average of 41 percent.
By contrast, only 16 percent of APAC institutions plan to issue their own stablecoins, the lowest figure among all surveyed regions.
The report said APAC institutions are prioritizing institutional asset servicing, with custody infrastructure serving as the foundation for tokenized securities and other digital asset products.
When selecting digital asset infrastructure providers, compliance and regulatory alignment ranked as the most important factor for 66 percent of APAC respondents, significantly above the global average of 43 percent. Integration with existing banking systems and interoperability across digital asset types were also identified as key considerations.
According to the report, institutions in the region are seeking infrastructure that combines compliance, security, interoperability, and integration into a scalable operational framework.