Alex Tapscott, chief executive of Northwest Passage Ventures, a blockchain business consulting firm, has said that Thailand should embrace blockchain technology to improve quality of life, according to a report from the Bangkok Post.
At a recent seminar, ‘Blockchain Revolution,’ hosted by Total Access Communication Plc (DTAC), Tapscott was a keynote speaker on the disruptive technology, which he has called the ‘second generation of the Internet.’
It is reported that around 40 percent of Thailand’s population has Internet access through their smartphones with 60 percent among the general population.
At the seminar, Tapscott said:
Bangkok can channel disruptive technology in a manner similar to Singapore, Hong Kong, Berlin and London in order to survive in the second era of the internet.
According to Lars Norling, DTAC chief executive, blockchain technology has the potential to change how businesses operate in Thailand and how it can contribute to the growth of the country.
Is Thailand Embracing Blockchain?
In the past, Thailand has bit somewhat adverse to bitcoin and its underlying distributed ledger, the blockchain. In particular, the Bank of Thailand has issued several statements as to their feelings on the digital currency.
And yet, while the Bank of Thailand may have taken a cautionary view toward bitcoin, it seems the country is slowing opening itself up to it.
Bangkok is seeing Fintech and blockchain activity.
Just last month, a successful blockchain remittance pilot saw 100 participating migrant workers transfer money to Myanmar instantly. Everex, an Asian blockchain startup based in Thailand, facilitated transactions totaling more than 850,000 Thai baht (approx. $24,000), using its wallet over a blockchain.
Not only that but earlier this month, Kasikornbank, Thailand’s fourth-largest bank by assets, developed a blockchain platform in partnership with Chinese FinTech firm International Business Settlement (IBS), which allows for baht-yuan cross-country settlements.
The past has shown that while Thailand has been slow to take advantage of the technology and what it can offer, it is attempting to make up by embracing the technology now.
Still a Long Way to Go
Undoubtedly, the country has many miles to cover before it can claim to be among the likes of London, Singapore, or New York.
However, as the benefits of the blockchain become evident such as through the ease of peer-to-peer transactions while maintaining a permanent public record of all transactions in sectors ranging from finance, government, energy, and supply-chains, Thailand could potentially end up becoming a hub for the technology in the future.
Featured image from Shutterstock.
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