Eric Trump Also Attended…The Era of Virtual Assets is Just Beginning [Token 2049 Dubai On-Site+]

April 30~May 1 'Token 2049 Dubai' Held

Accelerating Virtual Asset Innovation in the US and Middle East

Uncertainty is Opportunity…Time for Aggressive Buying

The Golden Age of Crypto Starts Now

The global blockchain conference 'Token 2049 Dubai' was held for two days from April 30 to May 1 at Madinat Jumeirah in Dubai.

Token 2049 is a global Web3 conference held annually in Dubai and Singapore, with the Dubai conference in April and the Singapore conference in September. This year's Token 2049 Dubai saw participation from over 15,000 attendees, more than 4,000 companies, and over 200 speakers, sharing opinions on promoting the global blockchain industry.

Notably, the news that famous figures such as Eric Trump, the second son of the US President Donald Trump, Changpeng Zhao, founder of Binance, and Justin Sun, founder of TRON, would take the stage heightened expectations among global Web3 stakeholders.

Accelerating Virtual Asset Innovation in the US and Middle East

The most notable speaker at this event was Eric Trump, Executive Vice President of the Trump Foundation.

Eric Trump stated, "The existing financial system is only for the top 1%," and "The vulnerabilities of the financial system continue to be exposed, and virtual assets will be an alternative for this."

He also advised that traditional financial sectors should quickly adopt virtual assets to avoid falling behind. He said, "While it takes 3-4 months to get a loan from a bank, blockchain allows for immediate, low-cost, and transparent fund processing," and "Eventually, traditional financial institutions will perish if they do not abandon the outdated fee-based model and embrace virtual asset innovation."

He added, "Our goal is to provide financial freedom to the world. Financial freedom is the greatest opportunity for humanity since the internet," and "The US and UAE, among others in the Middle East, are becoming the centers of innovation because they have quickly secured openness, unlike Europe, which is trapped in regulation and bureaucracy."

He also shared news of collaboration with Binance, the world's largest exchange. Zach Witkoff, co-founder of World Liberty Financial (WLFI), who participated in the fireside chat with Eric Trump, said, "World Liberty's stablecoin project USD1 will be used in Binance's investment by MGX, an Abu Dhabi investment firm," and "We will support the use of USD1 in hotels and everyday retail stores by connecting DeFi with existing payment systems in the future."

Uncertainty is Opportunity…Time for Aggressive Buying

Arthur Hayes, founder of BitMEX, well-known as an OG (Original Gangster, a pioneer who entered the virtual asset market early) in the virtual asset industry, advised that the ongoing macroeconomic uncertainty should be seen as an opportunity.

Arthur Hayes said, "Recent global economic and financial market uncertainties are escalating. A similar opportunity to the market bottom in 2022 is approaching," and "Now, when everyone feels uneasy, is the time to aggressively buy assets."

He said, "In 2022, as central banks around the world rapidly raised interest rates, asset prices fell sharply, and US Treasury bonds recorded their worst returns since 1812, but the market began to recover immediately after the FTX bankruptcy," and "Many investors lost opportunities as fear dominated the market at that time. A similar situation is expected to occur this time as well."

He also predicted that Bitcoin would reach $1 million within the next four years. Arthur Hayes said, "The current structural changes in the global financial market will eventually work in favor of Bitcoin and other virtual assets," and "Bitcoin will reach $1 million by 2028."

The Golden Age of Crypto Starts Now

Changpeng Zhao, founder of Binance, the world's largest virtual asset exchange, focused on the convergence of artificial intelligence (AI) and blockchain.

He predicted, "Blockchain can be utilized in various fields such as land registration, public record storage, and document management beyond finance, and AI will perform numerous tasks using data based on this."

He added, "Decentralized AI, which combines blockchain and AI, will become a key area in the future," and "I believe blockchain and AI will shape the future digital economy. We must lead the industry with a long-term vision and patience."

He also pointed out that the full-fledged bull market has not yet arrived. Changpeng Zhao said, "Institutional acceptance is accelerating after the approval of the Bitcoin spot ETF. Since the adoption rate of the Bitcoin network is still low, I see ample room for long-term growth," and "More sophisticated and transparent forms of capital will flow into the market."

Dubai=Youngmin Lee, Bloomingbit Reporter 20min@bloomingbit.io