🩷 Make crypto cute

Things are gearing up here for Korea Blockchain Week.

At the VIP dinner for the Story Origin Summit (of which Blockworks is a partner), crypto business leaders from around the world dined on a Michelin-approved six-course meal while Story co-founder SY Lee and DFSB Collective President Bernie Cho went headfirst into the data showing why South Korea is a cultural powerhouse — with strong interest in crypto.

For instance: Did you know there are 225 million Kpop fans around the world? And that 32% of Korean music companies’ revenue comes from merchandising?

Just saying: A blockchain-powered RWA platform for Kpop photocards would go hard.

— Kate Irwin

Can’t be in Seoul for Origin Summit? We've got you covered.

Join the livestream tonight to hear from the brightest builders, founders, and investors shaping the future of IP and Web3.

The event kicks off tonight on the Blockworks X account at 8pm ET on Sept. 22 / 9am KST on Sept. 23. See you on the stream!

Crypto needs mega IPs

Kpop Demon Hunters released just three months ago — and it’s already become Netflix’s biggest movie ever.

It’s been watched over 236 million times, according to Netflix’s own Tudum blog. 

Kpop Demon Hunters’ writer-director Maggie Kang was previously at DreamWorks for over a decade in its story department for animated films, working to bring big IPs like Shrek spinoff “Puss in Boots” and the toy-driven “Trolls” movie to life.

On Monday night in Seoul, she spoke onstage in a conversation with Story co-founder SY Lee about what she’s learned about building a massive, original IP that’s in some ways a departure from her previous work.

Kang wasn’t sure if Kpop Demon Hunters was going to resonate with global audiences, in part because she began developing the project seven years ago at a time when the musical genre felt more niche. 

But the opposite is also true in Hollywood: Make something too generic, and viewers won’t feel connected. It’ll feel soulless because it lacks specificity — and key character anchors.

“With any IP, if you don't get the approval and the love from your core audience, then you lose everybody,” Kang said. 

Crypto could afford to take a lesson out of Kang’s playbook. 

Recently, consumer crypto has been piggybacking off Pokémon — a franchise that’s nearly three decades old, though still awesome — to find success with RWAs. 

Users of Pokémon RWA platforms Courtyard, Collector Crypt and Phygitals have spent over $367 million on virtual gachapon, with most of that volume occurring this year. 

Could any of those platforms be successful without Pokémon? Right now, the answer is absolutely not. 

And could a crypto-native IP ever see similar numbers? Or is “Web3 culture” truly a niche that will never escape its own bubble?

Kang’s smash hit shows us that you don’t need to release countless games and trading cards for decades to build a beloved, original brand that translates into endless licensing plays. 

You just need to build something audiences care about. 

You need to build a narrative. 

Those audiences don’t need to be financially invested. But easy, open access to the content can hook them in. 

Kpop Demon Hunters is so good because its three female leads, plus its lead male villain, each present a different “type” of person. But all four face a relatable human emotion — guilt or shame over who they are — and have to grapple with it while battling an evil demon boy band. The supernatural layer of the movie is based in Korean shamanism, which gives the “demon” trope a more grounded, historical significance.

All that specificity helps it stand out and feel authentic, while still being easy enough for viewers to understand. 

Right now, the Pudgy Penguins are one of the very few crypto-native players using original IP to make a seat for themselves at the table of global fandom.

As the Pudgies’ Luca Netz told me earlier this year, “cute” IPs rule the world. Sanrio, Pokémon, and Kpop in general would all fall into that category, as would his Penguins. 

But if you ask me, Pudgies could use character-driven world-building to really push them to the level of LINE Friends, which are everywhere in Korea (and, like Sanrio, focus on a core set of just a few different, specific characters).

Cuteness has mass appeal, though it needs to avoid feeling generic in order to be a mega-IP.

And it isn’t just for kids. 

Kang said her target audience for Kpop Demon Hunters was actually those around ages 12-30, and found that demographic was who watched the film first.

“I think it's important to target that age group, because those are the most active on social media. They're the ones who are posting about what they like, what they see, and I feel like that's what really helped our movie become so viral,” she explained.

Crypto is changing TradFi derivatives and rate markets as we know them.

DAS: London will feature all the builders driving this change. 

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📅 October 13-15 | London