Blockchain Fair Asia 2018 is planning to hold its inaugural conference in the Taguig City, Metro Manila, Philippines at the SMX Convention Center Aura on October 11 and 12, 2018.

With the theme “Looking Beyond Blockchain Hype”, the event is expected to draw cryptocurrency and blockchain experts and enthusiasts from all parts of Asia and the global crypto community at large.

Blockchain technology has been hailed as one of the most revolutionary innovations of the present day. But it has yet to gain mainstream adoption globally and Blockchain Fair Asia hopes to offer insight on how this can be done.

Apart from shedding light on the latest trends shaping the crypto industry, the conference will aim to explore the practical use scenarios of blockchain technology. 

As the theme suggests, the event will focus on the viability of the technology beyond speculative investments. It will also seek to highlight the crucial role of the Philippines and its potential in the global crypto industry.

In addition to keynote speeches, the event will also engage the audience through a series of panel discussions on various fascinating topics.

Since the event will feature an exhibition area, blockchain entrepreneurs can showcase their business models. 

Given the fact that it is expected to draw 700-1,200 attendees from all sectors of the industry, the conference is expected to offer blockchain community members an opportunity to connect with like-minded individuals and expand their networks.

Big Industry Names Expected at the Conference

Key players in the global cryptocurrency industry are expected to grace the event and deliver keynote addresses and talks on various intriguing topics. There will be crypto experts from different sectors of the economy from finance and banking to the business world and IT.

Among the 30+ speakers at the conference will be a number of notable blockchain company founders and executives, at least 10 representatives from venture capital firms and industry thought leaders.

These will include Kiana Shek (DigiFinex co-founder), Pavel Bains (Bluzelle CEO), Katsuya Konno (Quione CFO), Roy Lai (Sentinel Chain CEO), Henry Wang (SmartMesh founder), Yang Yang Zhang (PDAX co-founder), Ahmed Abdulla (Digipharm CEO), Mark Vernon (Tagcash CEO), Rafael Padilla (Blockchain Association Philippines co-founder and many more. 

Some of the VC firms that will participate in the event include LuneX Ventures, the recently launched crypto arm of Golden Gate Ventures, Outlier Ventures, Life.SREDA, KaizenVC, ChainVC, DFJ Dragon Fund (Draper Dragon), etc.

EventChain is one of the event partners with its CEO/co-founder, Ashton Addison listed among the speakers. Gerb Reign Inajada, the assistant VP of UnionBank, one of the most blockchain-friendly banks in the Philippines will also speak at the conference.

These are just some of the speakers who will tackle various conference topics, additional names will be announced during the coming weeks preceding the event.

ICO Pitch Session

One of the most eagerly anticipated parts of the event will be a dedicated ICO pitch session. During this session, a total of 15 blockchain projects with upcoming ICOs will get the opportunity to pitch before the VC representatives and potential investors.

Each of the select projects will have between three and five minutes to sell their concepts to the audience and get expert feedback. To apply, they need to send their pitch decks or whitepapers to pitchblockchainfairasia@gmail.com. 

Why the Philippines?

Regardless of regulatory crackdowns in a good number of Asian countries, the Philippines is emerging as a key player in the crypto industry.

It has been hailed as one of the most crypto-friendly nations in the world, as it has progressively adopted policies that foster blockchain industry growth.

At the same time, the government is creating the so-called “crypto valley of Asia”, a fintech and blockchain hub similar to the one in Zug, Switzerland.

The development of this region has been placed under the mandate of the Cagayan Economic Zone Authority, which announced that it would issue 25 operating licenses for digital asset exchanges.

The country has also been at the forefront of an initiative to regulate the domestic crypto industry, first releasing ICO draft rules and more recently announcing the planned release of crypto exchange regulations.

Lastly, the local remittance industry, wherein the Philippines is ranked third globally, and the widespread internet use are among the top factors contributing to the massive adoption of blockchain technology and cryptocurrencies in the country.