Bitcoin came into existence a little over a decade ago and financial markets, as we know them, have changed drastically since. Today, we find ourselves amidst an interesting intersection in time where money belonging to the people, governments, and corporations are going head to head.

During a large part of Bitcoin’s decade-long existence, it was traded mostly by tech enthusiasts, gamers, and early adopters. All that changed in 2016 when initial coin offerings (ICOs) became the primary way to fund crypto projects. The ICO rally not only resulted in the disruption of many industries, but it also paved the way for retail and corporate investments as well as mainstream blockchain adoption.

While 2020 brings a new set of challenges for crypto asset adoption, we now are witnessing new levels of maturity in the crypto asset space, one that involves active engagement from governments and large corporates.

Financial powerhouses such as JP Morgan got its foot in the door with its own internal stable coin JPM Coin, and tech giants such as Facebook announced its crypto project Libra last year, which includes a consortium of companies such as Uber and Spotify. Governments have gotten in on the action too with many announcing they are looking into Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC) projects.

Also Read: 2 ways cryptocurrencies are disrupting the stock market

With various innovations taking place across the globe, many are wondering who is leading the cryptocurrency revolution: East or the West?

Regulation – hindrance or incubator? 

A key component to examine is the regulatory environment and policies of the Eastern and Western world. As crypto assets are relatively new, governments around the world are still trying to fully comprehend its capabilities and use case.

While some countries have whole-heartedly embraced crypto assets, others have taken a more wait-and-see approach, with a number even banning it.

Several crypto asset projects have popped up all over the world, giving the illusion of a truly global crypto asset revolution. However, if we take a closer look, these companies are usually registered in one of a handful of countries such as Singapore, Hong Kong, Japan, Switzerland, Malta, and regions like the Cayman Islands and Gibraltar.

Why these specific few? Put simply, it comes down to either of two reasons; these countries and regions have a clear regulatory environment that allows crypto or blockchain companies to operate, or they allow these companies to register without any questions asked.

Though the US is home to some of the biggest companies and capital globally, and the country is a big market for crypto assets, this does not mean it is leading the world in blockchain development.

Also Read: The call of crypto: why bitcoin points to need for investment startups in Asia Pacific

Hester Peirce, Commissioner of the US Securities and Exchange Commission, believes that Asia holds an upper hand over America in crypto assets. This stems from what she claims is a clear policy framework in Asian economies. Japan has made a name for itself as a major centre for crypto asset trading after handing out 22 licenses to exchanges since 2017.

Earlier this year, Singapore made global headlines when the island-nation introduced new payments legislation, the Payment Services Act, offering global crypto firms a chance to expand their operations by applying for operating licenses in Singapore.

In the past five years, the crypto space has gradually shifted from being Western-dominated to one that sees significant participation and innovation from Asia.

Eight of the top 10 mining pools in the world come from Asia, more specifically China, making the region the lead in staking – a method of earning interest from cryptocurrency by holding it for a period in your wallet. From the total number of exchanges to the total number of ICOs and IEOs issued, Asian companies greatly outperform their Western rivals.

Government-backed projects in the East

Another key difference between Asia and the West is government proactiveness in understanding, implementing, or even leading blockchain-tech initiatives. Even though crypto assets and blockchain are some of the most debated topics in China, towards the end of last year President Xi endorsed blockchain development in China.

Shortly after, the country announced its ambition to digitize the renminbi, also known as the Digital Currency Electronic Payment (DCEP). Many believe that the launch of a digital Yuan could challenge the dominance of the US dollar.

Also Read: XanPool launches platform to enable P2P transactions from local currency to cryptocurrency in SEA

The digital currency is currently being tested in Suzhou and the country’s Xiong’an new district with 19 popular merchants, including McDonald’s, Starbucks, and JD supermarkets. The People’s Bank of China (PBOC) has also announced that further testing will be conducted during the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympic Games.

In addition to its digital currency, China’s nationwide blockchain network, the Blockchain-based Service Network (BSN) officially launched on April 25. The BSN is a global infrastructure to help blockchain projects create and run new blockchain applications at a lower cost, thus accelerating the development of a digital economy.

The substantial progress China has displayed in actively bringing wider blockchain adoption is no doubt a key factor in its advanced technological development.

While both businesses’ and governments face unprecedented strain due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the race towards crypto adoption shows no signs of slowing for many Eastern countries. The Chinese Government is actively working to see how blockchain technology can be used to aid social governance, while South Korea’s biggest bank is set to launch a crypto custody service.

Even as Singapore works to contain the virus, the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) recently announced regulatory relief for Digital Asset Exchanges in the city-state. In Japan, the country’s new crypto asset regulations have also come into effect on the May 1, protecting crypto investors involved in exchanges, as well as custodians and their assets.

Also read: Why Bitcoin is set to boom in a post-COVID-19 era

This continued acceleration towards a regulated, decentralised solution shows us that the East has a desire to stay ahead of the curve, maybe even more so as it becomes apparent that we might continue facing an economic crisis.

US presidential election: a turning point for crypto?

We’re seeing a mixed picture in the US. The Trump administration recently released the 2021 budget proposal and while many had hoped to see a positive attitude towards crypto, this was not the case.

In fact, the White House announced a need to tighten measures against financial crime, which crypto is a part of. For the US government, crypto is clearly still a threat.

Fed Chairman Jerome Powell said in a letter to federal lawmakers last November that it is exploring the development of digital currency in the US.

Andrew Yang, a former US presidential candidate in the current race, was known as the “Cryptocurrency Candidate”. He advocated for a comprehensive national approach to blockchain and crypto and publicly endorsed blockchain after US Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin labelled bitcoin a national security issue.

However, when the former political hopeful dropped out of the race in early February, many lost hope of having a crypto ally in government.

Nevertheless, some see hope in democrat Joe Biden. While he has yet to comment directly on crypto assets, a political action committee (PAC) that was campaigning for Biden to run for the presidency in 2016 began accepting donations in BTC. The former Vice President is known to be progressive when it comes to technological advancement and a pro-crypto asset President might not be too far-fetched for the United States. 

Whilst there are some positive developments in the West, it still lags behind the East when it comes to crypto adoption and regulation, especially as the East maintains regulatory momentum and China returns to work while most of the Western world remains in strict lock-down.

As it stands, Asian economies appear to lead the crypto race, although the West is showing that it has no plans on being left behind. The crypto asset space is a fast-moving one and only time will tell who will truly win this race, but one thing is for sure – crypto assets are here to stay.

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I recalled how that session at Echelon Asia Summit 2019 was ‘paranoia at first sight’ for me.

Co-founders Dexter Ng and Andy Prakash, armed with only some basic info commonly found on anyone’s business card, proceeded to demonstrate how easy it was for hackers to scam potential victims.

I wasn’t the only one shaken after the event, it seems. One of my e27 colleagues revealed that since then, she would set a regular notification on her calendar to remind herself to change all of her passwords.

Fast forward to 2020. We greeted the new business normal with much trepidation. While I’m aware that there seems to be an increase in fraudulent activity as a result of the evolving digital landscape, it wasn’t until I caught up with Ng again that I grasped the severity of the situation.

He painted the picture by recounting as many horror stories as he could in the limited time we had.

“In this era, where businesses are going digital, information is king and we have seen too many instances of data breaches leading to illicit data mining,” Ng began his narrative.

“No one wants their data to be publicly disclosed inciting identity fraud or harassment. We discovered that a significant number of businesses don’t have a Data Protection Officer appointed or even know what the mandatory PDPA obligations are.”

Also Read: AI-empowered data platform Sentient.io secures Series A funding led by Digital Garage Group

According to Ng, this gap in the market was what led Andy Prakash to start Privacy Ninja, a tech startup that aims to empower companies to protect their data, trust, and loyalty by improving their people, process, and policies.

To be spoofed is to believe

Because I had to see for myself what Ng was talking about, I volunteered as a tribute. In under three minutes, Ng had spoofed my work email account to make it look like I was attempting to borrow money from him. By the looks of it, the entire thing looks legit, from my name down to my email signature.

Imagine this business email spoofing scenario playing out multiple times across the globe, and taking different forms: a request from your boss to release payment, a request for sensitive data from a stakeholder, and the list go on.

Authorities caution that scammers are likely to take advantage of the circuit breaker period by attempting to trick more people since the working arrangements can lead to less oversight. In fact, Ng shares on their homepage blog that for the past week, a group of blackhats has been selling a steady stream of user databases from alleged data breaches.

The various levels of online creepy

If business email spoofing is terrifying, then prepare to be even more petrified. Hackers can easily check out previous passwords of your email accounts, so if your current one is too weak or follows the same pattern as your previous ones, you’re setting yourself up for future headaches.

Also Read: Data management startup Delman secures US$1.6M seed funding from Intudo Ventures, others

In his demo with me, Ng only needed about a minute to pull up the string of old passwords of my personal email account.

The final demo for the day was what Ng dubbed as ‘call spoofing’. Call spoofing happens when the caller ID is changed to any number other than the calling number. In my case, I didn’t inform Ng whose number I gave him, but by the screenshot of his phone below, he knew as soon as he spoofed the number to call me.

For employees, knowledge is power

Profit loss, identity theft, and stolen bank information are only some of the possible issues individuals may face in the wake of a data breach. Here, Ng shares some nuggets on how employees can better secure themselves especially in these uncertain times:

• When in doubt, call up the person in question. It only takes a few minutes to verify if you’ve indeed received a legitimate message.
• Don’t use the same passwords across all accounts because if data gets leaked, you’re in big trouble. You don’t want your life’s worth of data to end up at the hands of virtual thieves.
• No user account registration means no data can be lost. Be mindful of where you agree to sign up and what data that site can collect from you.
• Don’t use the same browser for everything you do. For example, you may use Chrome for Gmail, Google Meet, or Facebook, then use Firefox or Brave browser for online shopping or personal banking. It’s an open secret that Google and Facebook track and continue to monitor your browsing activity even when you close their tabs or logout. 

As such, education and awareness is key to securing your data privacy, and data protection training is the first step in any organisation’s data protection journey. In fact, during this work-from-home period due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Privacy Ninja has conducted live webinar training for employees from various companies for its PDPA Compliance & Awareness course.

Also Read: Between data and gut feeling, which one do Singaporean customers trust to make decisions?

“Employees gearing up to take on the Data Protection Officer role in their company or staff handling personal data would greatly benefit from training, and learn not only the PDPA obligations for compliance, but also best data protection and cyber hygiene practices,” Ng explained.

For businesses, being safe than sorry can’t be more true

“The last time when companies only needed to focus on protecting the office, it was already difficult for them. Now they have multiple endpoints (laptop and mobile devices) accessing their company files from different locations all over.”

“Company data has become more challenging for SMEs to protect, especially those who don’t even have an IT team or an IT personnel in the company,” he added.

One way to solve this is through data protection softwares. For Privacy Ninja, they’ve made it easier and more affordable for SMEs to keep their sensitive data private with their Privacy Data Protection endpoint software, and for home users, they recommend Bitdefender software and a company called BitCyber is the appointed distributor in Singapore.

“We can identify sensitive documents via keywords or regular expressions,” Dexter revealed. “Once sensitive files are identified, employees working from home won’t be able to share those sensitive files on platforms such as Facebook, WeChat, Telegram, or WhatsApp. From whatever platform the company chooses to restrict company documents, we are able to configure for them.”

Getting a PDPA check-up: one small step for SMEs, one giant step for business empowerment

It’s not only company data that businesses should be looking after. With Singapore proposing to tighten the data protection laws, companies must also be at the forefront of PDPA knowledge and compliance. As PDPA laws and stiffer penalties for info leaks are in place, learning about these and complying to the terms are not even an option, but a fiduciary duty among businesses.

Also Read: Afternoon News Roundup: Bukalapak denies reports of user data breach

“This is why Privacy Ninja is also offering a complimentary PDPA compliance checkup where in a matter of minutes, businesses will be able to tell their level of compliance,” Dexter asserted.

With work from home now part of the new reality, the chances of fraud among businesses and even employees surge exponentially. Now that you know this much, it’s high time that you step up and fight tooth and nail to protect your company data privacy and yours.

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Singapore-based early cancer detection startup Endofotonics has raised US$12 million in a new round of funding, the company announced today.

The Series B funding round was led by health tech investors of Singapore Medical Group (SMG); Tony Tan Choon Keat, Chairman of SMG; and Dr Beng Teck Liang, CEO of SMG.

Endofotonics will use the funding to commercialise its early gastric cancer detection system within Asia and grow its cancer detection technology coverage to other organs. It also plans to launch its system in Europe in 2021.

Founded in 2013 with a 12-men core team, the company has since its inception developed the SPECTRA IMDx system which allows early detection of gastric cancer during endoscopy. The company claims that the “addressable market potential of the system is estimated to be more than US$5 billion”.

However, it is important to take note that development for health tech is not a cheap effort; therefore, companies taking on such business need a lot of capital for research.

Also Read: Going big? Then Go e27 Pro.

“Leveraging on Raman spectroscopy, we have developed a platform technology that can be applied to multiple organs, giving clinicians real-time information to make decisions then and there. Not only can this be applied to early cancer detection, but it can also be further developed to identify safety margins for dissections or resections,” said Peter Cheng, CEO of Endofotonics.

Endofotonics had previously raised Series A funding in 2016 from ZIG Ventures and SEEDS Capital, the investment arm of Enterprise Singapore.

The company is supported by its backer’s through access to global engagements with hospitals and enterprises in Europe and China.

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I know these are unique times (to say the least) and I know not everyone is in the same boat. The pandemic has affected each of us in different ways; our context is an individual one, and there’s no need to compare.

Your shit is not better or worse than my shit. It’s just your shit that you need to deal with.

This shift in our community has been an awakening for all — both good and bad; in work, life, love, family, friends, habits, schedules, and ecosystems altogether.

(From) Response to recovery

Community Leaders, at our core, are people-connectors, relationships facilitators, and instigators of unexpected collaborations. We bring magic and engineered serendipity into groups, everywhere.

In this period of crisis, many of us have done what we do best, respond by caring for others, and by always looking for ways to create value for those around us. These are often selfless actions driven by a passion for a larger purpose.

While our agility and speed are essential to the way we work and has given birth to lots of great online content and new ways of interacting with our communities virtually, this blog post is about (the often slower process of) recovery — it is about re-investing in us, and our communities.

Also Read: Eastern Pacific Shipping, Techstars set up Global Maritime Startup Accelerator Class in Singapore, revealing nine startups selected

In these times of uncertainty and isolation, we could all use an authentic connection. Below are some small actionable things we have been doing individually and together that are helping us on day-to-day:

Schedule time (with your best friends and also not)

Schedule time with the people! Quantity is the first filter here. Keep connecting with those you’re already close to, but also build time to connect with those you haven’t had a chance to see, speak, or interact within a while. From our experience, we can tell you that authentic community leaders differ from others because of their appreciation for human connections.

Quantity is the first filter here.

Do the things that don’t scale, talk to individuals — not groups. I’m sure we all have our fair share of group calls and conferences, and the Zoom fatigue is real.

What we are talking about is the willingness to show up, care, listen, and connect. Understand very well where people are and what they are going through. We are not looking for aggregates and averages here, but rather real stories, real people.

See the activities beyond the short term transactional value and for the long term impact they have for growing the community, each other, and serendipity will follow.

Communicate (and then communicate some more!)

Being a good community member, the number one thing you want to invest your time and energy into is being a better communicator. If both words look strangely alike, it is because they are. A well functioning community requires good communication from all its members.

Also Read: Why silence is not golden

Share with people what you’re doing — whether it’s baking bread or taking time to be unproductive or whether it’s a call-to-action to bring folks together for something cool — sharing, helps! Being isolated from each other really exaggerates everyone’s perception of what everyone else is doing.

By sharing the good bits and the not-so-good bits (where you can), you’re helping your community more than you know.

Prioritise yourself

Whether that’s redecorating your space to find some zen or blocking time out in the day to run or investing in plants, finding time outside of work to bring some normalcy to this increased isolation is more important than you realise.

You don’t have to go into overdrive with hustle-culture or bake so much banana bread you can feed a school or build 30 businesses in 30 days — unless that’s what brings you sanity. It’s really not about how much you do, but about what you do. Find the thing that brings you peace, hold on to that and slowly build a little more of it into your days.

Above all people are people; we need more human connections, listening and consoling than most. If you have the capacity to be there for people, it can literally change someone’s world. And, always remember, that if you need someone to do the same for you — there are more people that you realise in your community who will do the same for you.

Larger than the sum of the elements, yes sure, but right now let’s not neglect the elements. It’s about you and the small things you can do.

Reach out. Talk. Scream. Laugh. Brainstorm. Share. Do whatever you need to do to be okay.

But remember, it’s also okay to not be okay sometimes.

You’ve built incredible communities. They are always going to be there for you. And so are we.

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Ten countries in Southeast Asia have been embracing the digital economy both from the private and public sectors. Each nation has its challenges and unique approaches to technology disruption.

For example, Singapore is considered a financial hub with the majority of people living in the city, while Cambodia or Myanmar are still developing their infrastructure with less than 50 per cent of the population in urban areas.

Regardless of the differences, Southeast Asia has 350 million internet users – more than the entire American population. Have no doubt about it, the digital economy here is set to continue to boom, with Google recently reporting that the internet economy in Southeast Asia would reach $240 billion by 2025. 

With a digital-economy ready landscape, I believe Southeast Asia can take advantage of digital assets in a number of unique ways. Here are just six instances where digital assets can help empower Southeast Asia’s economy. 

Stimulate collaboration between the public and private sectors

Regulation can be seen as a roadblock for digital assets in SEA. It might be true that the government and public sectors are usually slower in adopting new technologies such as digital assets, but changes are unavoidable. Every government knows that the digital economy is the future; thus, the digital asset movement could spark collaboration between the public and private sectors like never before.

The private sector needs government support to unlock investment and infrastructure while the government needs expertise from the private sector. These collaborations are inevitable and could stimulate the growth and development of the digital economy.

Thailand has taken initiatives working with eight banks to test its central bank digital asset, Intanon coin. The Intanon coin is a proof-of-concept that the government’s digital token can be used to facilitate transactions in the private sector.

Workforce skills and education improvement

Digital assets are proving to be a gateway to a full-on digital economy. Technologies are disrupting virtually all sectors. Although digital assets alone might not have a massive impact on the economy yet, they play a key role in showing the people and government how the future will look.

I think the coming of digital assets is changing the skill sets needed, resulting in changes to education systems globally. Knowledge and skills are being developed in a different way to comply with the worldwide digital economy. 

Banks for unbanked

According to a recent World Bank report, half of the population in SE Asia are unbanked, with only 4 per cent of people owning a credit card. The digital asset allows people to catch up with the digital economy, the so-called new world. People can have a credit score, get a loan, and shop online without needing a bank account or credit card.

Also read: Why trust and transparency are the answer to concerns about digital assets

A digital asset ensures no one is left behind when we are moving so fast to the digital world. Being able to access digital payments also means the size of the digital economy is bigger than before. 

Improve the velocity of money

The government has been making more money and injecting them into the system to solve the economic crisis for a long time. After a while, increasing the money supply does not help with GDP much due to the lower money velocity rate.

A low money velocity rate means money is not circulating as fast since people are not spending money. Digital assets make it easier for people to spend money, which, I believe, could increase the velocity of currencies also. 

Take China for example; China just launched a Digital Yuan to be the nation’s stable token. An effort to be a leader in digital transformation is not surprising; Chinese people have bypassed bank accounts and credit cards to mobile for a long time.

It’s estimated that around 80 per cent of Chinese smartphone users use mobile payment via services like Alipay and WeChat Pay. Not only will having a digital currency make it easier for money to circulate in the system but I believe it may also help regulate the debt market across SE Asia more effectively. 

Increase wealth especially for millennials

With half of Southeast Asia’s population being millennials, they are the first generation to see technology disruption for themselves. The millennial generation grows up with the digital transformation, and they believe that this is the future. Interesting research shows that 43 per cent of millennials online traders have more faith in digital assets more than the stock market. 71 per cent of the survey respondents said they would trade digital assets if traditional institutions offer it.

I think we will see a pattern emerging where tech-savvy millennials with investment power are more willing to invest in digital assets. Digital assets provide stronger methods for millennials to increase their wealth, which, I believe in turn will result in a better economic wealth of the country. 

Empower SMEs

It is of common belief that wealth has always been limited to people who already have it. The barrier to raising funds or entering a new market for people with fewer resources such as small to medium businesses have always been higher than big corporations.

Digital assets allow anyone to have their online payment option, which melts the wall between SMEs and the potential market anywhere in the world. They fuel success, helping provide entrepreneurs of all gravities to have an opportunity like any other big player. 

While I don’t believe digital assets are the key to solving all problems in SE Asia, they will certainly empower the economy in a way that no other technology can. I think digital assets can be credited with providing everyone, everywhere, with a chance to enter the new digital economy. They also play an essential role in shaping a future that everyone can be excited about.

From my experience, most of the countries in Southeast Asia are ready to adopt digital assets, and, interestingly some governments are taking initiatives to explore this new technology. You can trade digital assets legally in countries like Singapore, Thailand, and Indonesia. The market is only getting bigger, and it seems unavoidable for each country to ride the digital transformation wave, which is starting today.

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