Southeast Asia or SEA’s friendly regulatory environment and rapid online finance growth propelled a booming blockchain industry. A recent report shows over 40% of Singaporeans Own Crypto. That said, the fast-developing region also has its growing pains. Let’s talk about the challenge and opportunities in the SEA blockchain industry.
Thanks to the support from many governments in the region, SEA countries generally hold welcoming attitudes towards blockchain technology. For instance, rooted in its support for financial innovation, the Singapore government has in principle, approved the legal operation of crypto exchanges recently. The increasing internet penetration also accelerated the adoption of innovative blockchain personal finance solutions, especially for people without a traditional solution. According to a 2017 research, there are 20 million Southeast Asians working in foreign countries, and more than 73% of them don’t have a bank account.
This does not mean there aren’t challenges for SEA blockchain to develop.
First, the increasing internet penetration is still not high enough. The regional inequality of internet infrastructure places bottlenecks in covering developing countries like the Philippines and Indonesia, which have many islands and therefore, are hard to get connected completely. On the other hand, for countries with better coverage, the infrastructure for content delivery also hasn’t reached an ideal saturation, resulting in poor or even intermittent user experience.
The welcoming attitude also introduces compliance exposure for illegal financial activities like money laundering, which, thanks to the traceable nature of blockchain, will be hard to identify and prevent.
So, what does this mean for companies trying to get into the SEA market?
First, always keep compliance in mind. The nature of blockchain means it can be used as a tool or a weapon. If you want to build a sustainable business, stand on the right side.
Second, build solutions with digital transformation in mind. Blockchain has the power to not only disrupt but also modernize businesses. Blockchain technology can play a significant role amid the rapid industrialization of southeast Asia in areas like the internet of things and e-commerce.
Last but not least, be sure to find a reliable content delivery partner to ensure a smooth user experience for customers on your platform, be it an NFT trading platform or crypto exchange. In attracting customers in the highly competitive environment, even 1 second of delay will cause bad user churn.
To know more about SEA blockchain technology and ways to build reliable blockchain infrastructure in Southeast Asia, please visit EdgeNext.com and chat with us.
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