"Futures Listing as a Turning Point" - Insights from a Renowned Chinese Economist on the Essence of Bitcoin Assetization

"Why has Bitcoin (BTC) started to become an investment target for traditional finance now? It is not because the price has risen, but because it has begun to meet the conditions of an 'asset.'"
Fu Peng, former chief economist at Northeast Securities, joined Bitfire Group, a Hong Kong main board listed company that is gaining attention as a pioneer in Web3 compliance, as chief economist in 2025.
During his visit to Japan in May 2026, CoinPost had the opportunity for an exclusive interview with Fu Peng. As a representative of Bitfire Group, deeply rooted in the compliance-oriented fintech sector in Asia, he discussed the "assetization process" of Bitcoin, the long-term cycle in the Japanese market, and the trend of integration between traditional finance and cryptocurrency.
Fu Peng graduated from the ISMA/ICMA School at the University of Reading in the UK (International Securities Investment and Banking). After working at Lehman Brothers Investment Bank and Solomon International Investment Group in London, he became the chief economist at Northeast Securities in 2020.
After resigning from this position on April 30, 2025, he took on the role of chief economist at Bitfire Group (formerly Huobi Technology), which is listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange. He has experience as an economic commentator for China Central Television and has over one million followers on Douyin (the Chinese version of TikTok).

Three Stages of "Asset"

It is said that traditional finance began to pay attention to Bitcoin around 2020, but there are criticisms that they are not early participants.
Faith comes first, and assets come later. This is true for any asset in human history.
The first stage is "preaching and faith." Like a religion, people who spread values emerge first. The second stage is "consensus formation." From a few people recognizing it, more people start to acknowledge it. The third stage is finally the "metamorphosis into a true asset."
The same goes for Lafite red wine. Initially, it was just a bottle of wine. Only after the accumulation of stories such as value transmission, rarity, and historical weight does the consensus that "Romanée-Conti is a good wine and has value" emerge. An asset without consensus cannot be financialized. Even a small circle of consensus is not enough.
The "merchandise" that my child buys in Akihabara or Shibuya, such as badges, acrylic stands, and blind boxes, has established a solid consensus within that community. Posts on social media say things like, "I have this from Manufacturer B, but I want to exchange it for something from Manufacturer C." This is essentially bartering, and consensus naturally forms prices.
However, true assets are still far away. True assets must generate "time value," that is, cash flow.
True assets must essentially provide "non-interest income" or "time value." Many assets function close to this in the early stages, but ultimately, the question is whether they can generate cash flow income.

Turning Point of Assetization

At what point did Bitcoin transform into an "asset"?
The first turning point was the moment when exchanges listed Bitcoin futures.
Editor’s Note: In December 2017, the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) approved the listing of Bitcoin futures. The Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE) achieved listing on December 10, and the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) followed on December 17. This was the first "legal positioning" by the U.S. financial supervisory system regarding Bitcoin. Before 2017-18, Bitcoin was still in the stage of cultivating consensus and preaching value. Although Satoshi Nakamoto designed scarcity, the only source of revenue was volatility.
What capital seeks is not volatility, but a long journey and the cash flow generated during that time. Many interpret Buffett's investment as "buying good stocks and not selling them," but this is a significant misunderstanding. Good stocks are those that can dilute costs. If something bought for 5 yen becomes cost-free in 10 years, subsequent price fluctuations do not matter.
The reason Bitcoin is similar to gold in this regard lies in the mechanism of gold leasing. The gold held by central banks is there, but the delivery certificates function as lending tools, creating leases. This is cash flow.
You can see the essence of perpetual futures. Individual investors trade volatility, and for that, liquidity providers are needed. Large holders provide liquidity while holding Bitcoin and receive returns of around 15% annually as funding rates.
This is structurally identical to properties in central Tokyo. There are only a few hundred units. The more you hold, the stronger your rental capacity becomes. Stocks are the same. Those holding the most primitive stocks continue to receive dividends. Others trade volatility through derivatives, but they are receiving interest.
Bitcoin is limited in quantity and cannot be increased. Therefore, those who held a large amount early on will continue to receive "rental income" indefinitely. While you chase volatility through derivatives, they continue to collect interest.
The turning point for Bitcoin lies here. From early storytelling, preaching, and value formation, it transitioned through widespread adoption, consensus formation, and legal approval to ultimately become an asset class. This is the fundamental reason why we in traditional finance have suddenly begun to pay attention now.

Long-Term Cycle of the Japanese Market

What observations did you make about the Japanese market during this visit?
Observations of Japan began in 2012. At that time, the CIO of the Soros Fund (who later became U.S. Treasury Secretary, Mr. Yellen) moved from Hong Kong to Tokyo, and established hedge funds from London also entered Tokyo before the Abe administration began. Buffett also came to investigate after the Fukushima nuclear accident in 2011.
Why? Because the mismatch in production relations caused by Japan's "lost 30 years" was approaching a turning point as the aging population exceeded a certain threshold.
The institutional reforms of the Abe administration in 2012, known as the "three arrows," carried out profound reforms at the institutional level. Yen depreciation, capital inflow, rising asset prices, and improvement in youth employment. Then came inflationary pressure, rising wages, labor shortages, and interest rate hikes, a process that took ten years.
Now, AI and semiconductors are beginning to penetrate from the U.S. to Japan, and as shown by TSMC's expansion into Kumamoto and Hokkaido, new productive forces are accelerating the growth of Japan's younger generation.
In terms of exchange rates and asset cycles, Japan's first stage (yen depreciation, asset rise, capital inflow, improvement in production relations) is nearly complete. The second stage is a gradual rise of the yen alongside the continuous rise of core assets.
It follows the same trajectory as Shanghai in the past. The initial decline of the yuan, foreign capital inflow, rising real estate, followed by a second wave of yuan appreciation and real estate appreciation. This is because local people gained purchasing power.
I expect that over the next ten years, the yen will gradually appreciate from the current 160 yen range to the 150 yen range, ultimately reaching around 110 yen. Many people worry that the appreciation of the yen will lead to a decline in Tokyo's assets, but that will not happen. As long as production relations keep up, appreciation of the exchange rate and rising assets can occur simultaneously. This is the most advantageous phase.
Therefore, the correct transaction now is to buy Tokyo assets (such as properties) in U.S. dollars and continue to dilute costs with rent. When the second wave of yen appreciation comes, the assets will have increased when converted back to U.S. dollars. Blackstone's aggressive acquisition of properties in central Tokyo is based on executing this logic over a 20-30 year span.

Bridging Traditional Finance and Cryptocurrency

What discussions did you have with cryptocurrency stakeholders during your stay in Japan?
There are not many cryptocurrency stakeholders. Mainly traditional financial institutions and asset management companies.
What we are trying to do is bring the experiences of the previous era of FICC (fixed income, foreign exchange, commodities) into this space and add crypto. Through that channel, we aim to deeply understand cryptocurrencies and then sell them back to traditional financial institutions. Future JP Morgan will also need talents familiar with cryptocurrencies. Traditional finance does not necessarily understand cryptocurrencies, and those knowledgeable about cryptocurrencies do not necessarily understand traditional finance. Those who understand both can act as a bridge.
What are your thoughts on the future of exchanges? BitTrade, a registered exchange under Bitfire Group, has been operating in Japan for many years while complying with regulations and has established itself as the fourth largest registered platform in the industry, making its presence felt in the compliance market.
I believe the direction of Bitfire Group is correct. As a compliance trading platform registered with Japan's Financial Services Agency, the growth strategy of the BitTrade team is also very localized and grounded. It continues to contribute to the healthy development of Japan's cryptocurrency industry over the long term.
The Japanese market has unique characteristics. Japan is positioned between the U.S. and China, conservative yet open, and needs to progress steadily step by step.
First, if Bitcoin is recognized as a legitimate means of payment and exchange in the future, exchanges will become the best exchange channels.
Second, traditional asset exchanges and cryptocurrency exchanges will ultimately merge. Cryptocurrencies will be traded there, and tokenized traditional assets will be traded here. Ultimately, it will become a competition of efficiency and cost. This is why Bitfire Group and BitTrade are continuously making large-scale investments in compliance infrastructure in the Asia-Pacific region.
The advantages of blockchain and tokenization lie in low costs and high efficiency. In the future, it will be possible to complete all transactions of bonds, foreign exchange, commodities, cryptocurrencies, and stocks within a single wallet at extremely low costs. This will be the final form we will inevitably reach. Looking inside Bitfire Group, it is clear that they are also investing more effort into the development of Web3 infrastructure.
Japan has a unique "fandom economy," which I find very interesting. There is talk of whether we can tokenize underground idols, not just having older men give tokens as tips, but distributing the earnings of idol groups directly as dividends. In other words, it’s like turning idol groups into stocks. Pokémon cards, merchandise, and badges also have a solid common understanding formed within the community. I believe this is a very promising direction in Japan.
Young people enjoy the world of anime and manga while buying stocks of related companies. Investing while playing, isn’t that how it should be?

This content is provided for general informational purposes only and doesn't constitute financial, investment, legal, or tax advice. Any events, rewards, online promotions, or related information mentioned herein should not be considered a recommendation, solicitation, or invitation to purchase, sell, trade, or otherwise deal in any crypto assets. Crypto assets are highly volatile and may result in loss. The availability of WEEX services, products, and related events may vary by region. You are responsible for ensuring that your participation is in accordance with applicable local laws and regulations.