A New Turning Point in the Blockchain Industry by 2025: Market Restructuring Focused on Practicality and Efficiency
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Restructuring the Blockchain Market with a Focus on Practicality
As of November 2025, the global blockchain market is undergoing a fundamental turning point. According to the latest report from market research firm Gartner, global spending related to blockchain technology is expected to reach $67.5 billion in 2025, a 68.4% increase from the previous year. Notably, this growth is no longer reliant on cryptocurrency speculation or the NFT craze but is concentrated on enterprise solutions aimed at solving real business problems.
The Korean blockchain market is also evolving in line with these global trends. According to the ‘2025 Blockchain Technology Development Status’ report released by the Ministry of Science and ICT, the domestic blockchain market size is projected to grow by 51.8%, from 1.23 trillion won in 2024 to 1.87 trillion won in 2025. Supply chain management, financial services, and government administration are expected to account for 73% of the total market, with the share of practical applications expanding rapidly.
Samsung SDS (Headquarters: Seoul) is one of the leading companies driving these market changes. In the first half of 2025, the company provided supply chain tracking services to over 120 domestic and international companies through its self-developed blockchain platform ‘Nexledger,’ achieving a 320 billion won revenue, an 89% increase from the previous year. With the growing demand for raw material tracking and carbon footprint management due to strengthened ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance) requirements from global manufacturers, Samsung SDS’s blockchain-based solutions are gaining attention.
LG CNS (Headquarters: Seoul) is also expanding its market presence through its blockchain-based digital identity verification service ‘Monachain.’ In 2025, the company secured over 15 digital identity management projects for government agencies and large corporations, with related business segment revenue increasing by 156% to 180 billion won compared to the previous year. With the strengthening of personal information protection laws and the acceleration of digital transformation, the demand for secure identity verification solutions is surging, further enhancing LG CNS’s growth momentum.
Central Bank Digital Currencies (CBDCs) and Financial Innovation
One of the most notable areas in the blockchain industry in 2025 is the development and adoption of Central Bank Digital Currencies (CBDCs). According to the latest survey by the Bank for International Settlements (BIS), 94% of 130 central banks worldwide are conducting CBDC research, with 24 countries operating actual pilot programs. Notably, China’s digital yuan has surpassed a cumulative transaction amount of 175 billion yuan (approximately 35 trillion won), entering the practical stage, and the European Central Bank (ECB) is also set to begin a digital euro pilot by the end of 2025.
The Bank of Korea is also accelerating its research and development of the digital won. According to the ‘CBDC Technology Verification Results Report’ released by the Bank of Korea, the pilot operation conducted in the first half of 2025 confirmed the capability to process 2,000 transactions per second, with an average transaction fee reduction of 67% compared to existing card payment systems. The Bank of Korea is establishing a cooperative system with commercial banks for the full-scale introduction of CBDCs in 2026, planning to invest a total of 48 billion won in building blockchain infrastructure.
Global financial institutions are also actively building blockchain-based payment systems. JPMorgan Chase (Headquarters: New York) processes an average of $13 billion in inter-institutional payments daily through its self-developed blockchain network ‘JPM Coin’ as of 2025, a 280% increase from the previous year. The company announced that its blockchain-based payment services achieved a 95% reduction in transaction processing time and a 40% average fee reduction compared to the existing SWIFT system.
IBM (Headquarters: New York) provides supply chain transparency solutions to global food companies such as Walmart, Nestlé, and Unilever through its blockchain-based trade finance platform ‘IBM Food Trust.’ As of 2025, 2,400 companies in 75 countries are using this platform, demonstrating innovative results by reducing the time to trace the cause of food safety incidents from 7 days to 2.2 seconds. IBM’s blockchain business division recorded $1.4 billion in revenue in the first half of 2025, growing 67% year-on-year.
Oracle (Headquarters: Redwood City, California) is also focusing on expanding blockchain-based cloud services. The company’s ‘Oracle Blockchain Platform’ recorded a 124% increase in customers to 890 companies in 2025, mainly in the manufacturing, logistics, and healthcare sectors. It shows strong competitiveness in medical data management and counterfeit drug prevention, with related revenue growing by an average of 35% per quarter.
Technological Maturity and Future Prospects
By 2025, blockchain technology has achieved remarkable advancements in scalability, interoperability, and sustainability. With the full implementation of Ethereum 2.0, the transaction processing capacity has dramatically improved from 15 transactions per second to 100,000, and energy consumption has decreased by 99.95%. Additionally, with the maturity of layer 2 solutions, the gas fee issue has been largely resolved, significantly enhancing practical usability.
Notable progress has also been made in interoperability. With the development of cross-chain protocols like Cosmos, Polkadot, and Avalanche, asset transfers and data sharing between different blockchain networks have become seamless. Particularly, the ‘Interchain Security Protocol’ launched in the first half of 2025 improved the security of cross-chain transactions by 340%, accelerating the adoption of multi-chain strategies by enterprises.
The regulatory environment is also gradually improving. With the full implementation of the European Union’s ‘Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation (MiCA)’ in 2025, a clear regulatory framework is provided for blockchain companies, and the United States is also on the verge of passing comprehensive federal digital asset legislation. Korea is also resolving legal uncertainties for blockchain companies through the enactment of the ‘Digital Asset Basic Law,’ expanding participation from institutional investors.
Market experts evaluate 2025 as the ‘Year of Practicality’ for the blockchain industry. According to Deloitte’s latest report, 87% of the global top 500 companies have integrated or plan to integrate blockchain technology into their core business processes, a 31% increase from 2024. Particularly, there is a surge in cases creating substantial ROI (Return on Investment) in supply chain management, digital identity verification, and smart contract automation.
However, challenges remain to be addressed. The high entry barrier due to technical complexity and the cost and time issues arising from the integration process with existing systems are delaying corporate adoption. Additionally, the shortage of blockchain professionals is a serious issue, with domestic demand for blockchain developers being 2.7 times higher than supply. Consequently, the government and private sector are collaborating to expand blockchain professional training programs, aiming to nurture 5,000 blockchain experts by 2026.
From an investment perspective, the 2025 blockchain market requires a selective approach. Venture capital firms are now focusing on companies with clear business models and proven market demand rather than the blockchain technology itself. Although global blockchain startup investment in the first half of 2025 decreased by 23% year-on-year to $8.9 billion, the average individual investment size increased by 42% to $12 million, indicating qualitative growth.
Going forward, the blockchain industry is expected to focus on in-depth development in specialized areas and value creation through convergence with existing industries. Particularly, the role of blockchain in new digital economy areas such as carbon credit trading, digital healthcare, and the metaverse economy is expected to become more important, and companies that respond swiftly to these changes will secure next-generation growth drivers. Ultimately, 2025 is anticipated to be a turning point where blockchain transitions from an innovative technology to essential infrastructure.
*This content is provided for informational purposes only and is not intended as investment advice or a recommendation of specific stocks. Investment decisions should be made based on individual judgment and responsibility.*
