In an era where 700 million people hold virtual assets, what future does Bitcoin—the asset with the largest liquidity—envision? The 'Bitcoin-only' conference, covering all key issues in the ecosystem, has opened in Seoul.
On the 1st, OriginX held the Bitcoin conference 'Origin Seoul 2026' at Sky31 Convention, Seoul Lotte World Tower, conducting an 'Industry Day' session targeting companies and institutional investors on topics including on-chain analysis, regulatory trends, venture investment, and infrastructure.
Bitcoin is a virtual asset with the largest user base domestically and internationally, as well as a blockchain network. Its price plummeted from $120,000 in October last year, traded sideways between $60,000 and $70,000 through the first half of this year, then surged back to the $70,000 range within just a few days in mid-month, drawing significant attention.
James Check, CEO of on-chain analytics firm CheckonChain, explained that the recent bear market experienced 'price pain' in the first half and 'time pain' in the second half. Observations suggest that after panic selling and capitulation following the sharp decline, even investors waiting for a rebound felt fatigue and exited the market.
Check stated, "While we cannot know who bought Bitcoin, on-chain environments allow us to compare statistics by holding period and cohorts (same groups), enabling detection of market signals." He added, "Short-term holders act at macro highs and lows, making them valuable data sources."
Regarding the current market landscape, Check said, "I believe the bear market has ended. Unlike October last year when trading volume surged near the upper end of average prices on-chain, today we see a sharp increase in trades near the lower end. More participants are acting contrary to market sentiment."
At the conference, it was also argued that with Bitcoin market data accumulated over a long period, traditional dollar-cost averaging (DCA) strategies can now be enhanced.
Baek Hoon-jong, CEO of SmashFi, noted, "Setting DCA timing for the 28th to 30th of each month may lead to buying Bitcoin at high prices, whereas the 1st or 2nd of each month could see lower prices." He added, "Trading using indicators like MVRV (Market Value to Realized Value) and algorithms yielded higher returns than simple DCA."
Abroad, startups leveraging Bitcoin-based blockchain networks have emerged, along with venture investors targeting them. Fullger Ventures has invested in over 120 Bitcoin-focused startups while excluding altcoins.
Alexander Moon, Asia Partner at Fullger Ventures, stated, "Just a few years ago, Bitcoin Lightning and Liquid networks were immature, and technologies like Ark or Spark did not exist. Today, a complete technology stack for Bitcoin has been built, and current usage represents only about 1% to 2% of its total potential."
Jack Lee, Founding and Managing Partner at HCN Capital, said, "After several bull and bear market cycles, the perception that Bitcoin is an asset suitable for long-term holding has grown. Following price recovery, many countries will accelerate institutionalization efforts, new business models such as custody will emerge, and Bitcoin may become an asset allocation option on balance sheets."
As corporate direct holdings of virtual assets increase, concerns have been raised about the need to review self-custody security. The Bitcoin community recently experienced asset leakage due to a flaw in the cold wallet device 'Coldcard'.
Kevin Roach, CEO of WizardSardine, stated, "For companies, single-signature (single-sig) methods that store only one key are not advisable." He added, "Multi-signature (multi-sig) methods where multiple individuals each hold a key should be considered—for example, the CEO holds one key and the CFO holds the remaining one."
As large-scale graphics processing unit (GPU) infrastructure trends shift from virtual asset mining to artificial intelligence (AI) services, proposals have been made to increase mining efficiency by integrating equipment scattered across various locations. In this regard, USDT issuer Tether has already released an open-source Mining Development Kit (MDK).
Giorgio Rasetto, Head of MDK at Tether, said, "Mining equipment can be deployed anywhere and can consume unused electricity, allowing flexible operation for AI service equipment." He added, "The trend of miners relocating outside the United States will continue."
Origin Seoul 2026 will run until the 2nd. OriginX explained that the event, themed 'Public Day', will feature presentations on Bitcoin market analysis, self-custody, education, and culture.
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