A recap of blockchain week Singapore through the eyes of Tokenize.

Blockchain Week Singapore was the first of its kind industry wide communal effort to elevate the ecosystem and it is truly an amazing time to be in the blockchain space. Delegates, speakers and projects travelled from all over the world to be exposed to the blockchain community here in Singapore. From massive event conferences to intimate coffee talks, the buzz was definitely around blockchain and over the course of the exciting week of events, I found myself drawn particularly to these 5.

Evolution of the Cryptomarket — Tuesday 19 Sep

The first great event for blockchain week was held on Tuesday at SGinnovate. “Evolution of the cryptomarket” incorporated panelists from different key verticals in the blockchain space and the first panel discussion was an insight into the world of crypto hedge funds, venture capitalists and trading.

The panel addressed some key concerns about the status of the current financial cryptocurrency economy and shared their opinions on some factors contributing to its state. Although all of them expressed their troubles battling a bearish market, they shared one aligned vision — a positive cryptocurrency future. A majority of the audience were trading professionals or enthusiasts and they were intrigued as to what the next iteration of cryptocurrency markets will be. Many raised hands were followed by questions about leverage trading, market manipulation and about the current “crypto winter”. I also had the chance to experience great blockchain presentations by DUO network and their guests.

Consensus Singapore — Wednesday 20 Sep to 21 Sep

Consensus, the biggest blockchain conference in Singapore by far was definitely the main draw of Blockchain Week Singapore. With over 75 speakers and sponsors participating in the 2 day event, Consensus Singapore was THE conference to be in this year.

It is good to see how the Singaporean community is growing with regards to the crypto space despite the current financial trend. The ecosystem has taken a more mature form and it is great to see projects that are actively innovating in the blockchain space.

With many global players looking to Singapore as the hotbed of blockchain activity for SE Asia, it was not surprising to see the likes of Binance, Ark and Coinbase having prime spots throughout the event. The Exhibition hall was full of the who’s who in the blockchain space.

Xsquare and Friends meetup — Wednesday 20 Sep

This next event was situated in the intimate streets of Middle Road, in a charming event space above a shophouse. Despite the rain, people packed the room, eager to listen to the good projects that were scheduled to present. Xsquare did a good job to bring in many blockchain enthusiasts and I had the opportunity to network and interact with many like minded individuals. Venture capitalists, blockchain companies and even lawyers came down. It was hosted by prominent blockchain figure and news anchor, Teymoor Nabili, who moderated the event beautifully. Presenters took turns to pitch their projects to industry fund houses and the fund houses in turn provided valuable feedback and insight.

As this was my first time at a project pitch event, I managed to get good insights into the ICO industry, especially what investors look out for. With each project, I was exposed to new innovative ways that blockchain and cryptocurrencies can be used to benefit society.

Blockchain is really a magnificent tool which in the right hands can be used to bring a company to new heights.

Neo Singapore Meetup — Wednesday 20 Sep

Needless to say, this NEO event had a huge audience. Speaking presentations by the NEO team highlighted a lot of blockchain concerns in the market. They illustrated many of their upcoming plans and also how they plan to make NEO better for the overall community.

The event garnered attention from several media groups and even one all the way from Amsterdam. The Singapore NEO community seems to be very healthy.

Beyond the Moon Afterparty — Wednesday 20 Sep

Taking place in Singapore’s iconic Zouk, this afterparty brought together many of Singapore’s leading innovators, co-hosted by Coinhako, Chainrock, Events protocol and Fantom. The networking event gave the usually serious tone of blockchain a very casual setting and it was easy to discuss relevant topics surrounding the blockchain space.

We met the founders of Events protocol, QIQ and many other promising blockchain projects to discuss how we can grow the Singaporean blockchain ecosystem together.

Reflections from Consensus — Thursday 21 Sep

Several of Singapore’s blockchain PR firms collaborated to deliver a great event held at BitTemple Suntec. Tokenize founder, Hong Qi Yu was also part of the distinguished panel of speakers that were invited to share. He touched on topics in the ICO world and how he views the current volatility of crypto. He remarked that the volatility was in fact a good sign of the market. Every recovery prompts new entrants into blockchain space and despite it’s price, blockchain innovation is surging, with great ideas being implemented every day.

The second panel consisted of several other exchanges in Asia to discuss trends in the market, how it is affecting exchanges and their views on Bitcoins value moving forward. Although the bearish market has dampened some of the worlds trading volumes, the exchanges, including our own, stay relatively unaffected. Which is indicative of a good future ahead.

Blockchain week wrapped up

All in all, this fun and exciting week was a good eye opener. It really showcased the innovative landscape that Singapore has and also the amount of passionate blockchain enthusiasts in 2018. I see that as the community grows, so does the confidence in the technology. This momentum is pivotal to the development and progress of blockchain technology.