Danny Chong, Co-Chair of Digital Assets Association, the organiser of the inaugural Digital Assets Summit 2025, delivered his opening speech.
“With opportunity comes responsibility. Education is key to the growth of the digital asset industry. In the past five years, the pace of convergence between established financial institutions and decentralised innovators has accelerated dramatically. The bridge is not experimental anymore. It is already being crossed. And every step makes it stronger.”
Hester Peirce, U.S. Securities and Exchange Commissioner, spoke about “The Role of Custody in Institutional Confidence”.
“Some of the questions are how does a tokenised security interact with other iterations of the security and other forms of that security,” Commissioner Hester Peirce explained while calling for a nuanced approach to regulating tokenisation, saying, “Depending on how things are tokenised, it could be one of many different things.”
Commissioner Hester Peirce emphasised that “We are willing to work with people who want to tokenise, we urge them to come talk to us,” expressing openness to working with industry participants on tokenising products, highlighting the complexity of their interaction with traditional assets.
Alan Lim, Director, Financial Infrastructure & AI Office, MAS, had a fireside chat at the event to discuss how MAS is supporting the rapid digitisation of our financial ecosystem.
One of his key takeaways: “The key for Singapore’s growth lies in driving liquidity and bridging interoperability between ecosystems, bringing together various market participants. We are actively working towards customer and institutional protection, pushing for regulatory clarity, and creating the right guardrails for institutions.”
Samantha Yap, CEO and Founder of YAP Global, led a panel about successful case studies on successful RWA implementations with Dr Bo Bai, Chairman & Co-Founder of Alpha Ladder Group; Dr Sabrina Tachdjian, VP of Financial Markets & APAC at Hedera Foundation; Kelvin Tan, ED & Head of Tokenisation of Global Financial Markets at DBS Bank; and Marwan Kawadri, DeFi Lead at BNB Chain.
Here’s a quick snapshot from panellist Kelvin Tan from DBS Bank:
1. What is the biggest challenge in tokenisation? “Singapore faces a challenge of tokenisation, of being unable to tokenise real estate directly in Singapore, unlike other countries.”
2. What will the blockchain industry look like in the near future? “Blockchain will replace the backbone of our existing financial infrastructure eventually. However, the reality is this will take a very long time. For the financial industry to migrate into the on-chain world, it will not happen in the next 5 years.”
3. From a Banking perspective, what is their stance on tokenisation? “From the bank’s perspective, structured notes are the best option to allow traditional investors to access tokenised investment products.”
Dr Bo Bai also added that “Singapore currently has the best and clearest regulations to encourage tokenising RWAs, with clear guidelines and definitions by regulators to give institutions the confidence and assurance that it will be a seamless process.”
Tin Pei Ling, Co-President of Metacomp, gave a keynote speech on “How Stablecoins Are Reshaping Global Payments Infrastructure”, shared Metacomp’s latest research findings, and gave her analysis on how we need to grow the Web3 industry to promote wider adoption of digital assets.
She shared that “The future of global payments will not be purely Web2 or Web3. It will be Web2.5, a hybrid infrastructure that incorporates banks, fintech firms, crypto wallets and custodians.” she also emphasized the need for digital assets, citing digital assets’ settlement speeds and benefits for business transactions. “Delays of 2-7 days lead SMEs to lose deals. Payment verification taking too long or settlement delays are detrimental to SMEs that are speed dependent,” Tin Pei Ling explained during her keynote speech.
Professor David Lee, Professor of Fintech and Blockchain at the Singapore University of Social Sciences (SUSS), participated in a panel discussion to discuss “Talent for a Tokenized Future: Building the Next Generation of Web3 Professionals”
Professor Lee shared that “Learning in schools is extremely different from on-the-job experience. Schools can build the foundation but internships with industry partners are essential to the students’ growth. These partnerships also open up opportunities for guest lectures and learning sessions to give students the right skillsets and the most relevant skills they need for the job market.” He echoed the theme of the event being education as key for the industry’s continued growth.
When asked if schools can keep up with the pace of the industry, Professor Lee shared that “waiting for a syllabus to be approved might take years. In this fast-paced industry, it might be obsolete by the time students learn about it.” He also added that “Educators need to be sensitive to market movements and react quickly to make sure the right content is taught.”
Gracie Lin, CEO of OKX Singapore, spoke about building the future of Web3 together, a call to action for the industry.
Gracie explained that: “We must have shared standards that anchor trust. We cannot move forward being individual contributors but as an ecosystem instead. Holding ourselves all accountable to a high benchmark.” Gracie presented case studies where OKX contributed to the larger ecosystem, focusing not just on individual growth but together with others.
Most importantly, she said emphatically, “Let’s build with discipline, let’s build with each other, and let’s build to last.”
Chia Hock Lai, Chairman of RFI & Co-chairman of Digital Assets Association, closed the event by highlighting key themes and what we should look forward to in this industry.
He highlighted why stablecoins are so attractive currently, citing stablecoins’ benefits as “having a real impact in finance, banking rails, and payments”. He further emphasised that “Increasingly, we are seeing more and more business transactions done through digital assets such as stablecoins.”
We look forward to seeing you all next year for more discussions on digital assets in Singapore, as we learn more about innovations, collaborations and developments!
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Best wishes,
Your trusted YAP Global team
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