Metro Manila in the Philippines hosted the Asia Fintech and Blockchain Summit 2018 (AFBS2018 www.afbs.pro ). The summit is mainly focused on discussing the Application of Blockchain technology in future Finance. It was a unique event both because of its themes and organizes. The summit was hosted by AMG group, which was more than proper since the themes of the summit and the goals of this maverick company stem from the same tree. With the successful end of the event, all materials including keynotes can be downloaded for free from the official website of AFBS.
AMG Network
The modern marketing world is a strange mix of cutting-edge technology and creativity. The two are sometimes difficult to mix and connect, but since both are necessary to grab the attention of clients and customers, marketing agencies need to find ways to bridge this gap.
This line of thinking has led to the creating of AMG network. Its team comes from a tech background, with a dedication to cryptocurrencies and digital finances. This unique perspective has made it possible for AMG to look at the world of digital marketing with a fresh pair of eyes and the AFB summit is just another example of it.
How the summit came to be?
The main goal behind the summit was to connect the professionals working in the digital finance industry and to provide a forum where the industry can discuss its challenges and its future. AMG is already promoting quality digital currency exchanges, with long-term benefits for those using them. This has led to the cooperation with Huobi Global, Singapore based cryptocurrency exchange platform, that’s leading the industry in China.
Everyone in Huobi Global, AMG, and everyone interested in the future of finance, recognize the importance of South East Asia for this industry. AFBS was Philippines first international conference of such kind and it was both celebratory and effective.
International support
AFBS quickly gathered sponsor around the world, partly due to the relationships AMG has already established with its clients and partly because the summit itself has so much potential of becoming the industry event of the region.
Huobi Global and Bit.cc (formally known as AEX) Exchange have shown their support by providing rewards for the speakers in two major categories. Best presentation and best summit setup were huge successes and the competition for these rewards will probably get even tougher for the next summit. On the other hand, COLDLAR sponsored two of their latest hardware crypto wallet as the raffle of the summit.
What was really striking was the truly global reach the summit had and it goes to show that the future of tech and digital finance will be truly global as well. There were more than 500 attendees coming from Malaysia, China, Japan, Switzerland, and Canada
This kind of turn around naturally grabbed the attention of the media from Asia and all over the world. There were over 50 Chinese media outlets reporting about the summit and over 10 from the Philippines. All of them put the emphasis on the international and innovative themes of the gathering.
What was discussed?
Another interesting thing about the AFBS was the fact that it managed to feature seasoned professionals working in this field, but to still be new, fresh and educational. Cryptocurrencies are a relativity new phenomenon in the Philippines and that provided the opportunity for the speakers to discuss more general matters about the industry and to provide an educational context while discussing the news of the industry. This approach resonated with the audience since every speaker also held a lengthy Q and A session, answering the questions from the audience.
The Summit has featured some knowledgeable and educational speeches such as Effendy Zulkilfy, Jake Villanueva, and YangYang Zhang, the topics were broad and easy for this new market to digest. The local attendees were pleased to have such an opportunity to deepen their understanding of blockchain and its applications.
Atty. Edsel F. Tupaz followed up with a fascinating lecture about the legal framework behind ICO. The whole concept of cryptocurrencies is new to the Philippine legal system and this is an area to keep up with because it needs to be decided how the governmental institutors will handle digital currencies. The main issues are how the government will treat digital currencies, as an investment or as a currency.
Dr.-Ing. Sandy Shen from AMG, on the other hand, gave a lection about how significantly blockchain technology will help existing business by giving the case studies in digital advertising. The blockchain is not a silver bullet to every problem we have nowadays, but with a proper design and usage of the smart contract and crypto payment, it can help. The biggest issues troubling the market are numerous fraudulent transactions. Blockchain can help reduce those significantly.
Huobi Global was represented by their marketing director Ethan Ng, and he used this opportunity to announce a full system of support, that Huobi wants to extend to small businesses looking for the digital currency solutions. This is the first time for Huobi Global to address their services in public, and they are especially dedicated to keeping digital assets secure.
Blockchain projects, YeeCall, PlusChain, and SuccessMall showed the crowd how their projects were blockchain(ed) and how everyone can participate in their business using this technology. SuccessMall is the first e-commerce in the Philippines applied blockchain, and PlusChain announced their gaming platform plus blockchain strategy. Worth Noting that the Philippines is actually the 3rd largest user base for YeeCall among their 40 million global users. It’s a platform created to meet the needs of the region it’s based in. Migrant workers in South East Asia find its features to be particularly useful.
The entire summit was a productive and vibrant gathering of current and future industry leaders. Friendly and potentially lucrative chats continued beyond the stage and scheduled events as was planned for by the organizers.
AFSB 2018 was a huge success for everyone involved. South East Asia is now clearly on the map for digital currency trading, professionals working in the field had a chance to meet and talk about their work and summits such as this will soon become a tradition and a spot to be for digital entrepreneurs.