Hassan Maishera
ADGM’s Registration Authority (RA)and Hashed Open Research (HOR), a Hashed policy think tank, have co-authored a new policy report. The report included insights from the “Web3 Leaders Roundtable,” convened in partnership with Hashed during Abu Dhabi Finance Week (ADFW) 2025.
ADFW 2025 Focuses on AI Agents and Blockchain Infrastructure
In a press release shared with Cryptowisser, the teams revealed that the report focused on the key highlights of ADFW 2025.
The closed-door roundtable convened approximately 40 senior decision-makers from global financial institutions, regulators, and infrastructure firms, including Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (ADIA), BlackRock, the Depository Trust & Clearing Corporation (DTCC), Franklin Templeton, Circle, Consensys, Solana Foundation, the European Commission, and the Government of Liechtenstein.
Discussions focused on the convergence of AI and blockchain-based financial infrastructure, as well as practical bottlenecks shaping institutional adoption of digital assets.
The report noted that participants discussed the rise of AI systems in financial activity, including the implications of increasingly autonomous decision-making and execution.
They noted that machine-to-machine activity could outpace infrastructure designed primarily for human-led workflows, increasing demand for secure, transparent systems that operate at scale.
ADGM and Hashed’s report also emphasizes verifiable records and robust governance, with blockchain-based systems increasingly viewed as a foundation for trusted settlement.
According to the report, the roundtable discussed how tokenization has moved beyond digitizing existing assets into redesigning market structure, including issuance, distribution, and settlement.
Examples included DTCC’s stated aspiration to tokenize the entirety of the U.S. capital markets, and early adoption bridges such as tokenized gold products attracting flows from traditional gold ETFs.
Participants at the roundtable also pointed out that prudential and accounting treatment for stablecoins and other digital settlement assets can shape adoption at scale, and that personal AI agents (“digital twins”) may become a key interface for participation in the digital economy.
Regulatory Uncertainty Remains a Challenge for Institutional Adoption
Another area of focus in the report is the regulatory environment within the broader crypto ecosystem. The report notes that regulatory uncertainty remains a primary barrier to wider institutional adoption.
Challenges highlighted included risk-weighted asset charges for certain digital-asset exposures under Basel capital rules, which can reach up to 1,250%, overlapping AML and KYC requirements across jurisdictions, and unresolved accounting and tax treatment.
However, the report noted that stablecoins and real-time settlement are the most validated and practical pathways toward scaling on-chain financial infrastructure.
However, for tokenization to deliver real value and structural market upgrades, it also highlights the need for the existence of strong secondary market liquidity and reliable redemption mechanisms – otherwise, tokenization risks remaining a technical wrapper.
ADGM and Hashed also believe that overly prescriptive regulation early in market development can inhibit experimentation before risks and control points are observable. This underscores the importance of balanced frameworks that provide clarity and trust while allowing room for innovation.
While commenting on the report, H.E. Rashed Al Blooshi, Chief Executive Officer of ADGM Registration Authority (RA), said,
“This report reflects ADGM’s commitment to convening global perspectives that help shape the future of finance. As AI and blockchain become increasingly embedded in financial systems and participate directly in economic activity, governance cannot be an afterthought. The report highlights the control points that matter most in practice, including identity, permissions, auditability, and rights clarity, so that innovation can scale responsibly and remain aligned with market integrity. The focus must remain on building systems that are trusted, well-governed, and designed to operate at scale.”
Simon Seojoon Kim, CEO of Hashed, added that,
"This was an occasion where global leaders from regulators, institutional investors, and infrastructure builders came together to discuss how capital market structure should be redesigned and who should lead that redesign, addressing substantive policy directions at the intersection of AI and blockchain. We hope this report serves as a concrete reference for the design of digital financial infrastructure."
This latest development comes four months after USDC issuer Circle obtained a Financial Services Permission license from Abu Dhabi Global Market, allowing it to operate as a Money Services Provider in the UAE.
ADGM is the leading international financial centre (IFC) based in Abu Dhabi, the capital of the United Arab Emirates. It is one of the world’s largest financial districts by size and is the largest IFC in the Middle East and Africa by the number of active licences.
ADGM is also one of a handful of jurisdictions globally and the only one regionally to directly apply the trusted legal system of English Common Law.
Governing both Al Maryah and Al Reem Islands, which are collectively designated as Abu Dhabi’s financial free zone, ADGM connects the economies of the Middle East, Africa, and South Asia (MEASA) region with global markets.
Its progressive and inclusive ecosystem empowers financial and non-financial institutions to thrive, supporting innovation, sustainable growth, and long-term economic resilience.
Through its continued growth and cross-border partnerships, ADGM is strengthening Abu Dhabi’s position as the ‘Capital of Capital’ and a leading global hub for finance, investment, and enterprise.
