Sorry, but the Altcoin Bull Market Is Over / The 'Blockchain Throne' Apple and Google Are Targeting: Is Ethereum's Era as No. 1 Over? | UpRoot Company Vice President Kang Seung-gu

죄송하지만, 알트코인 불장은 이제 끝났습니다. / 애플·구글이 노리는 '블록체인 왕좌'..이더리움 1위 시대는 끝났나?ㅣ업루트컴퍼니 강승구 부대표
Watch on YouTube ↗  |  January 29, 2026 at 02:00  |  17:20  |  815 Money Talk (815머니톡)
Speakers
Kang Seung-gu — Co-founder and Deputy CEO, Uproute Company
Kim Seong-suk — Host

Summary

Kang Seung-gu, Vice President and Co-founder of UpRoot Company, discusses tokenization, Ethereum, stablecoins, and the end of the broad altcoin bull market with host Kim Seong-suk. He argues tokenization and stablecoins remain strong themes, but Ethereum faces big-tech competition and altcoins are now highly selective. He prefers Bitcoin and Bitcoin-related companies, including Strategy-like treasury companies, miners pivoting to AI data centers, and Bitcoin service providers.

  • Tokenization is highlighted as a major financial trend with 24/7 settlement and potential liquidity benefits.
  • Ethereum leads institutional and RWA usage but faces profitability and big-tech competition risks.
  • U.S. stablecoin regulation may expand dollar and Treasury demand while bringing issuers under control.
  • The broad altcoin bull market is seen as over, with selectivity around revenue, utility, and major altcoins.
  • Bitcoin is viewed as a digital store of value, and the guest invests in Bitcoin and related companies.
  • Bitcoin miners expanding into AI data centers and Bitcoin service providers are notable themes.
  • Naver's Upbit/Dunamu merger is seen as opening growth options; Mirae Asset's Korbit acquisition is a watch item.
Ideas
Kang Seung-gu Co-founder and Deputy CEO, Uproute Company 0:53
Tokenization can deepen asset liquidity.
Tokenization is a major investment theme because BlackRock and Larry Fink see it as a way to monetize all assets, from Gangnam and Dubai real estate to other assets. Tokenized markets trade 24/7 with instant purchase and settlement, which can deepen liquidity and potentially create a transformation flywheel across the economy.
RWA tokenization theme HIGH
Kang Seung-gu Co-founder and Deputy CEO, Uproute Company 1:58
Ethereum leads RWA but faces competition.
Ethereum is the leading platform for token issuance and institutional financial adoption because it is the most decentralized major mainnet and has the highest developer and institutional adoption; it holds over 60% of the RWA market. However, its open L2 policy weakens profitability, and big tech such as Google Cloud can build competing Layer 1 blockchains, so Ethereum's continued No. 1 position is not assured.
ETH HIGH
Kang Seung-gu Co-founder and Deputy CEO, Uproute Company 2:38
Solana gains RWA mainnet share.
Solana is gaining ground in RWA/tokenization mainnet usage, with its share rising recently, making it one of the major altcoin platforms to monitor alongside Ethereum.
SOL LOW
Kang Seung-gu Co-founder and Deputy CEO, Uproute Company 7:30
Naver-Upbit merger opens growth options.
Naver's planned merger with Dunamu/Upbit is a positive development because Naver's growth options had been capped, and combining Naver Pay's payment and remittance usage with Upbit can open the stablecoin market and provide founder-level synergies.
035420.KS MED
Kang Seung-gu Co-founder and Deputy CEO, Uproute Company 9:51
Bitcoin is a digital value store.
Bitcoin acts as a digital store of value similar to real estate, and the speaker cites Mirae Asset chairman Park Hyun-joo's view that real estate as a store of value in Korea has ended, requiring new stores of value such as digital assets. The speaker personally invests in Bitcoin and Bitcoin-related companies.
BTC HIGH
Kang Seung-gu Co-founder and Deputy CEO, Uproute Company 11:17
USD1 stablecoin gains market share.
The Trump family's World Liberty Financial USD1 stablecoin has recently gained share in a market previously dominated by Tether and Circle, helped by political connections and a Binance CZ meeting, so its share gains are worth monitoring.
USD1 MED
Kang Seung-gu Co-founder and Deputy CEO, Uproute Company 12:09
Broad altcoin bull market is over.
The broad altcoin bull market is over. Unlike past cycles when almost everything rose, the current market is selective and demands revenue, profit, and real utility; only three Korean projects listed on Korean exchanges in 2025, and Trump/Melania meme coins fell 98%, showing low-quality altcoins should be avoided.
Altcoins (broad) HIGH
Kang Seung-gu Co-founder and Deputy CEO, Uproute Company 13:56
Focus on major altcoins with utility.
If investors still want altcoin exposure, they should focus on major altcoins whose mainnets show real revenue, utility, and RWA/tokenization usage; Ethereum has over 60% RWA share and Solana is gaining share, while speculative tokens without real use should be avoided.
Major altcoins (large-cap altcoin basket) MED
Kang Seung-gu Co-founder and Deputy CEO, Uproute Company 15:34
Strategy accumulates Bitcoin for treasury.
The speaker invests in Bitcoin-related companies such as Strategy-like firms that strategically accumulate Bitcoin, providing corporate treasury exposure to Bitcoin's store-of-value thesis.
MSTR MED
Kang Seung-gu Co-founder and Deputy CEO, Uproute Company 15:44
Miners pivot to AI data centers.
Bitcoin miners are expanding into AI data centers because both businesses require land, facilities, and efficient electricity and operations. This convergence attracted strong attention and produced large gains, and the speaker invests in Bitcoin-related companies including this area.
Bitcoin miners expanding into AI data centers HIGH
Kang Seung-gu Co-founder and Deputy CEO, Uproute Company 16:27
Watch Bitcoin service providers.
New companies are emerging that build Bitcoin-life services and products such as custody, payments, remittance, and asset management, and the speaker is watching these Bitcoin service providers.
Bitcoin financial services companies MED
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This 815 Money Talk (815머니톡) video, published January 29, 2026, features Kang Seung-gu discussing RWA tokenization theme, ETH, SOL, 035420.KS, BTC, USD1, Altcoins (broad), Major altcoins (large-cap altcoin basket), MSTR, Bitcoin miners expanding into AI data centers, Bitcoin financial services companies. 11 trade ideas extracted by AI with direction and confidence scoring.

Speakers: Kang Seung-gu  · Tickers: RWA tokenization theme, ETH, SOL, 035420.KS, BTC, USD1, Altcoins (broad), Major altcoins (large-cap altcoin basket), MSTR, Bitcoin miners expanding into AI data centers, Bitcoin financial services companies