FRIDAY, March 29, 2024
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Bitcoin king: Kill ‘Amazing Thailand’ and boot up Asean digital hub

Bitcoin king: Kill ‘Amazing Thailand’ and boot up Asean digital hub

Thailand must speed up investment in digital infrastructure if it wants to become the region’s hub of digital economy, the country’s top cryptocurrency chief said on Friday.

Jirayut Srupsrisopa, founder and CEO of crypto exchange Bitkub, was speaking to an audience of government and business executives at the “Metaverse Expo Thailand” in Bangkok.

Jirayut said digital infrastructure development in Thailand is currently at an early stage as the country transitions to the era of industrial automation.

But to keep up with global trends and stay ahead in the region, the government must accelerate investment in digital infrastructure, he added.

The goal for the next 10 years should no longer be "Amazing Thailand" but to become the "digital economy hub" of Asean, the Bitkub chief said.

He added that the coming Web 3.0 era would be characterised by artificial intelligence and extended reality (XR), which links the real and digital worlds via virtual and augmented reality applications.

He also forecast the e-sports audience would outgrow the audience for music and film in the future.

“The world will be changed exponentially in Web 3.0,” he said.

The value of the global Web 3.0 market is expected to reach US$81.5 billion (2.9 trillion baht) by the year 2030.

Bitcoin king: Kill ‘Amazing Thailand’ and boot up Asean digital hub

He also urged the government to collaborate with the private sector to develop digital infrastructure via big data, regulations and workforce training.

“We have to work together to strengthen Web 3.0 infrastructure, allow people to establish companies on the structure and unlock prosperity for Thailand,” he added.

Bitcoin king: Kill ‘Amazing Thailand’ and boot up Asean digital hub

Meanwhile, Nicole Nguyen, co-founder of APAC DAO, an Asia-Pacific Web 3.0 community, said that transparency and shared values are essential to create engagement in the Web 3.0 community.

Success of the community also depended on cooperation between government and private agencies, she added.

Nguyen also noted that Southeast Asian nations such as Thailand and Indonesia have advantages in terms of digital ability and talent resources.

"These countries are great in terms of resources to build up, but on the other hand their populations are tech savvy and very young," she said.

Organised by Nation Group, the three-day “Metaverse Expo Thailand” runs at CentralWorld in the Thai capital until Sunday.

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