Devcon 7 selects Bangkok as host city amid regional crypto growth
The Ethereum Foundation has announced it will hold Devcon 7 from November 12 to 15, 2024, in Bangkok, Thailand. The foundation is set to invite Ethereum developers from all over the world, including Southeast Asia, to foster significant growth of regional crypto communities.
After successfully holding its Devcon 6 in Bogotá, Colombia, the Ethereum Foundation chose Bangkok as this year’s host city after taking Southeast Asia’s rapid cryptocurrency adoption and market growth into account.
Countries such as Vietnam, the Philippines, Indonesia and Thailand are renowned as some of the world’s leading crypto adopters, according to the 2023 Global Crypto Adoption Index.
Ethereum Foundation said passionate Southeast Asian Ethereum developers also contributed to Bangkok’s eventual selection thanks to their enthusiastic and groundbreaking proposals.
Furthermore, the foundation suggested Southeast Asian Ethereum developers apply for a sponsorship from its Road to Devcon (RTD) Grants, a round initiative to support local Ethereum communities and events.
Global crypto growth trends
Multiple regions worldwide are competing against each other to become the fastest-growing crypto markets as the industry grows. According to Statista, the cryptocurrency market’s revenue will reach US$ 51.5 billion by the end of 2024.
From then on, experts predict the revenue to show an annual 8.62 percent growth rate from 2024 to 2028. If the rate remains consistent, the market will garner a projected total revenue of $71.7 billion by 2028.
Crypto adoption rapidly spreads in countries or regions that see crypto’s potential to fund the economy if fiat currency is insufficient to support the national economy. Ukraine, for example, earned fifth place in the 2023 Global Crypto Adoption Index Top 20 from its widespread crypto use to fund its war efforts and wartime economy.
Nigeria ranked third in the index due to its widespread crypto adoption during harsh economic times, thanks to the significant numbers of the tech-savvy population. After banning crypto’s official use due to a lack of clear regulations from 2021, the Nigerian government embraced the emerging technology as of December 22, 2023.
As part of the historic move, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) issued a circular concerning the need to follow global crypto use trends and several guidelines to use crypto within the country’s legal framework.
Southeast Asia’s crypto appetite
Out of all Southeast Asian countries, Vietnam came out on top in terms of crypto adoption according to the 2023 Global Crypto Adoption Index. Research shows approximately 17 percent of Vietnamese citizens own or have used crypto for transactions, where Bitcoin or other trending crypto like Ethereum are popular in the country.
Experts attributed several reasons why Vietnam became one of the most prominent crypto-using countries, such as its people’s lack of faith in fiat currency, significant unbanked population numbers and untaxed crypto holdings.
Indonesia also became a significant player in the market, where the country successfully recorded 11.2 million registered crypto investors at the end of 2021. This growth occurred thanks to the widespread adoption of digital payment technologies in recent years, prompting users to switch to non-cash payments for faster transactions.
As another heavyweight crypto adopter country, experts predict the Philippines’ crypto market revenue will reach $115.5 million by the end of 2024 and $164.9 million in 2028 with a 9.31 percent annual growth rate.
Although the Philippines’ Securities and Exchange Commission recently cracked down on Binance since the platform is not registered in the country, it does not deter the population’s appetite for embracing crypto on a wider scale as they continue searching for alternative crypto platforms to perform transactions.
