Stablecoins will become a national priority for most countries in the future: SB Seker, APAC Head, Binance

Do you feel that India had a weak year in 2025? Will 2026 have a better year?

India has had a great year from a consumer demand perspective, better than anyone else. However, it has not leveraged consumer demand in developing national strategic priorities on digital assets. So what I look forward to in 2026 is more clarity from government and stakeholders so that service providers can move together and help participate in a wave of innovation and service delivery in India. The US, Australia, Korea, Japan, Thailand and European countries have a clear idea of ​​what they want. India hasn’t quite done that yet, but I hope 2026 will be that year.

Where do you see stablecoins in 2026?

Stablecoins and real world asset organization will be the big drivers of growth. Stablecoin adoption and interest has become the biggest use case for digital assets in recent times. This is probably the first time we’ve moved away from commerce as the biggest use case. I see this increasingly becoming a national priority for most countries. In the emerging markets of the APAC region, where local currencies operate within a volatility ban and inflation is an ongoing issue, retail adoption of stablecoins shows the highest success rates. Remittances are an area where stablecoins are starting to gain a very strong hold. We see stablecoins in payments. As countries build up, their strategic buffers consist of a mix of large cap tokens and a strong mix of stablecoins to enable liquidity. It is essentially a holding position in terms of digital assets. That’s where we see the greatest interest. This is a trend that will accelerate because it is tied to the base money supply. Users essentially see it as digital fiat.

What are your expectations for India’s upcoming budget?

I am very curious to see if there is any change in the tax regimes, especially transaction-based taxes, or TDS. Very few countries in the world still have a tax and deterrent regime through the introduction of a transaction tax at source. I’m just curious if there is any change as that would indicate a policy shift away from tax and deterrence and towards licensing and permitting. I also look forward to the allocation of expenses related to digital assets and whether there will be a regulatory body that will handle digital assets from a licensing perspective.

You also mentioned that builders are increasingly moving abroad. Is that a concern that India needs to address in the coming year?

We are talking about brain drain here. It is different and distinctive because these people do not necessarily leave India. They can perform these roles from a remote location perspective. It is certainly important to keep in mind that there is a talent pool that is not allocated. The talent pool will not be allocated to entities based in India or companies based in India, but to entities based abroad. So yeah, I think this is something to keep in mind. But talent goes where there is opportunity and I would like to see a near future where many more of those opportunities are created within India itself.

Are you looking at inorganic growth in Indian markets or globally?

We currently have no plans for acquisitions in India. Before we jump to any business model, we need to understand what the long-term policy will be in India: whether there is a clear interest in regulating licensing and growing this industry, or staying on the path of taxes and deterrents. At this point, a mere AML registration does not indicate an upward trajectory for the policy or a willingness to engage with the sector.

How do you communicate with regulators and encourage them to recognize crypto as legal assets?

We have instruments that generate returns based on the latent holding of assets. We have spending mechanisms such as Binance Pay and Binance Card. Binance Pay is growing at a record pace, meaning it is reaching the point of a critical mass of merchants accepting digital assets as payment settlement, especially stablecoins. We know that inbound remittances are being replaced by stablecoins in record speed in many countries. So there are more areas of financial services that are being disrupted by digital assets. That’s what’s missed when people talk about instruments like tulip mania. It is simplistic and does not capture what is happening in economic terms across the spectrum of options that digital assets provide.

How do you build that trust in the eyes of policy makers, normal people?

Security is the base layer. What we do in times of crisis is the next layer. When large-scale liquidations occurred on October 10 due to market volatility, we paid out $300 million in 48 hours to users who were unable to liquidate their positions on time. We did this in good faith. That’s where trust comes from: doing the right thing at the right time.