The TokenPost podcast analyzed the phenomenon where trust in government bonds and deposits, recently seen as "safe assets," is being shaken, and the potential structural shift in investment flows towards crypto assets represented by stablecoins that this may trigger.
Recently, U.S. long-term Treasury bonds (TLT) have fallen about 40% in the past five years, challenging the traditional perception of "risk-free assets." As a result, some evaluations point out that the expected returns on Korean won deposits and government bonds have essentially collapsed. With bank interest rates not keeping pace with rising prices, the era of negative real interest rates is solidifying, making it difficult to maintain purchasing power through mere asset holding.
In this context, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) recently acknowledged through a report that stablecoins have become a major component of the global financial system. The report shows that by 2024, the scale of cross-border capital flows based on dollar-pegged stablecoins (such as USDT, USDC) has exceeded $1.5 trillion and is partially replacing traditional financial channels. The IMF specifically noted that stablecoins are no longer experimental assets, but have reached a level of operation as macroeconomic variables.
Market interpretation suggests that this change is guiding a restructuring of asset operation methods. The crypto market is implementing various strategies that provide actual yields, primarily introducing the following three: △ stablecoin deposit interest ("dollar savings account") △ blockchain staking ("digital landlord") △ participation in decentralized lending protocols (DeFi lending).
Stablecoin deposits are a beginner-friendly strategy that aims for foreign exchange returns while minimizing volatility, offering more competitive annual yields than bank foreign exchange deposits. Staking is a mechanism to earn rewards by holding assets in a proof-of-stake (PoS) network, characterized by more proactive and compounded returns. On the other hand, DeFi lending is a way to obtain interest rate differentials directly from investors without direct bank involvement in the lending market. Although it requires an understanding of smart contract risks, relatively high yields can be expected.
TokenPost interprets this situation as an early signal of a structural shift in the concept of traditional safe assets. It is particularly important to pay close attention to the possibility of stablecoins transcending mere remittance methods and becoming an asset class that generates actual returns. At the same time, it must also be considered that as global inflation solidifies into a structural problem, the opportunity cost of holding currency is increasing.
Key points to observe going forward include: △ trends in cross-border capital flow changes △ regulation and institutionalization speed of stablecoins △ competitiveness of on-chain yields compared to traditional assets, etc. In a world where the longer assets remain idle, the greater the loss of actual purchasing power, it is time for investors to shift their response direction.
