» Vietnam Blockchain Week – An Introduction to a Global Blockchain Hub

Blockchain development may still be young in Vietnam, but the technology is being adopted by companies and understood by regulators at a rapid pace. The last year has seen countless workshops, competitions, meetups and education courses all focused on how blockchain can change the nation and world. Next spring the biggest sign of the country’s commitment to the revolutionary technology takes place. Vietnam Blockchain Week promises to be one of the most important events to educate, connect and develop blockchain breakthroughs around the world.

Why Vietnam?

Vietnam is the ideal place to host a huge blockchain conference. The nation is one of the world’s fastest growing economies (6-7% growth per annum) with a young, motivated population (over 40% of the 95 million population under are the age of 24) that is hungry for blockchain 4.0 technologies. New companies are being founded everyday and nearly everyone of them can benefit from blockchain technologies. Moreover, banks and regulators are taking an active interest in it and exploring the regulatory frameworks that will prove essential for its success.

IBL has long been committed to nurturing the growing blockchain community through partnerships top universities, banks, regulators, and startups. It is committed to sharing information and resources to help Vietnam become a blockchain hub through conferences, courses, contests, alliances, workshops, speaking engagements and incubations. As IBL becomes stronger and smarter, so does Vietnam’s blockchain ecosystem. The conference represents the next step in the evolution of the environment.

For those that have never yet traveled to Vietnam, the conference offers an ideal opportunity to experience one of the greatest travel destinations in the world. From the delicious street food lining Saigon’s streets to the gorgeous views at Ha Long Bay and cultural architecture of Hoi An, the country offers something for every kind of travel. Sample some durian, soak in the warm tropical sunshine, get lost in the frenzied neon streets and marvel at the natural beauty of charming Vietnam before or after learning about the thrilling future of blockchain technologies.

If you attend Vietnam Blockchain Week, you will be in a prime location for enjoying the city. The Riverside Palace is a 4-star Restaurant & Event Hall conveniently located by the river in easy reach of all major districts and attractions.

How Vietnam Blockchain Week Brings the Power of Blockchain to You

The two day event (March 7-8, 2018) will welcome 1,500+ finance and technology professionals to attend talks, panels and discussions from 60 of blockchain’s leading experts. Different event tracks are available to best meet the specific needs of developers, entrepreneurs and regulators. 15 case studies will make tangible the potential of the technology. Guests will have the opportunity to learn more about the technology whether they are entrepreneurs looking to add it to their products or services, officials trying to make sense of how to ensure it is a compliant solution or experts excited to talk about the latest trends and breakthroughs. The networking opportunities at the Tie.Night cocktail party and potential to meet investors, collaborators and partners makes it a can’t miss event!

Spotlight on Topics

Vietnam Blockchain Week will feature more than 30 talks and panels on a variety of topics. As the date approaches we will continue to highlight the speakers and unique subjects related to blockchain. Here is a sample of the insider experiences awaiting you at Vietnam Blockchain Week:

“Private investments into blockchain companies have risen to a new high – topping $4.5 billion so far in 2017, according to PitchBook. Join CEO Aaron McDonald from Centrality – one of the most exciting blockchain studios in the world for How blockchain can be a great way to raise funds whether it’s through an ICO or traditional venture capital efforts.”

“A Blockchain network infrastructure will make it easier than before for consumers and businesses to transact beyond the traditional Internet—and industry giants that have come to dominate today’s ecommerce. The end product is a better, smarter way of digital transactions and marketplace shopping. Join Katherine Ng, VP & Head of Marketing from QUOINE, the first licensed cryptocurrency/token on Japan exchange, for how Blockchain transforms marketplaces and exchanges”

“As the blockchain-focused community of entrepreneurs expands worldwide, so does the ecosystem aimed to support and nurture top-performing solutions. Being FinTech-focused is not enough – experienced professionals are branching out to blockchain-focused entities, incubating and accelerating development and deployment of blockchain-based solutions

across industries. Join Ayako Miyaguchi, Managing Director from Kraken Japan, one of the largest exchanges in the world handling billions of dollars in crypto assets per month, for Accelerator & Incubator for Blockchain.”

Spotlight on Speakers

Some of the leading minds in research, development, marketing and regulating will be at Vietnam Blockchain week to share their ideas, experiences and predictions for the technology. The list of speakers includes:

Nguyen Hung Nguyen – National Payment Corporation of Vietnam (NAPAS)

Nguyen is a leading expert in the Card Payment industry with more than 10 years of payment solutions and consultancy experience. In his current role as CIO of NAPAS, he oversees the operations of NAPAS’s IT infrastructure and leads the development of NAPAS digitization platform which aims to make electronic payments in Vietnam faster, more secure and more convenient. It is relying on blockchain technology to increase ease and access for the unbanked or underserved.

Altona Widjaja – VP of Fintech and Innovation Group, The Open Vault, OCBC Bank

Altona joined OCBC (Oversea-Chinese Banking Corporation Limited) over 10 year ago and has held diverse positions including treasury system analyst and project delivery manager. As leader of the Project Management Office in Indonesia he oversaw multiple projects including technology deployment to retail banking management.

Today Altona runs The Open Vault, the Fintech and Innovation arm of OCBC Group. He oversees the development of the Fintech accelerator program, Fintech solution development and Innovation culture building.. He has built key enablers for experimentation/innovation process in OCBC Group, including data sandbox platforms, KYC, AML drive projects for trade finance, blockchain and machine learning. In November, OCBC Bank became the first bank in Southeast Asia to use blockchain technology to make local and cross-border inter-bank fund transfers.

Ayako Miyaguchi – Managing Director, Kraken

Ayako joined Kraken and the cryptocurrency sector in early 2013 in San Francisco and has educated regulators and elected officials in Japan especially after the collapse of the MtGox cryptocurrency exchange. She secured the agreement between the MtGox bankruptcy trustee and Kraken, leading the projects for the investigation and other proceedings. She is a founding member of the self-regulatory body, Japan Authority of Digital Assets (JADA) and spearheads JADA’s foreign relations. With the current growth in the FinTech sector in Japan, she is discussing potential blockchain projects with Japanese banks and technology companies. Kraken is helping increase blockchain’s visibility through its promotion of cryptocurrencies and education efforts.

Da Hongfei, Founder of NEO, CEO at Onchain

Da Hongfei is CEO at Onchain where is one of China’s leading blockchain technology companies. The Onchain team is comprised of both tech and business experts, including some of the first Chinese developers to adopt blockchain technology; technical architecture experts from major financial institutions; and CFA- and FRM-certified financial business experts from world-class investment banks. The company is helping lead blockchain use amongst banks through education and development efforts and thus helping mainstream the technology.

Da is also Founder of NEO which has a cryptocurrency token that is among the top 10 cryptocurrencies with a market cap of more than $1.4 billion. NEO is a blockchain project that utilizes blockchain technology and digital identity to digitize assets, to automate the management of digital assets using smart contracts, and to realize a “smart economy” with a distributed network. It places particular emphasis on compliance efforts and will therefore help usher in regulation-friendly blockchain use

About Event Organiser – Infinity Blockchain Labs

IBL’s goal is to create a world that runs on blockchain. By teaching developers and entrepreneurs, we can help ensure that the technology is being applied to cause maximum impact across fields and sectors. Similarly, by educating regulators and institutions, we can assist in fostering an environment that supports and embraces blockchain. We hope to do so with specific focus on Vietnam in the belief that it can become a global hub for blockchain development. Vietnam Blockchain Week is a critical part of us achieving these goals and a way to help people take full advantage of blockchain technologies.