Singapore Successfully Holds First Blockchain Hackathon

Innovative concepts are always welcome in the field of bitcoin, as cryptocurrency itself is on the cutting edge. Gatherings such as last week’s Blockchain Hackathon are important to keep fresh ideas in the space, as well garnering more attention. The event was sponsored by IBM and DBS Bank, the Development Bank of Singapore. It was also supported by Singapore’s Coin Republic and Neuroware.

Participants and interested attendants came from far and wide, including some big names in regional finance. According to CEO and co-founder of Neuroware Adam Giles, a number of participants were not familiar with the blockchain upon arrival. Giles and his team spent the two days familiarizing contestants with the blockchain and the Neuroware API Blockstrap, which is very flexible for making digital currency apps.

“Considering this was the first time a bank has ever so publicly backed blockchain technology it’s difficult to imagine how it could have gone better.”
— – Adam Giles, CEO and Co-Founder of Neuroware

This event brought together great minds in the financial and digital currency worlds, giving them a chance to exchange thoughts in a comfortable and creative environment. The event had two challenges; either help the unbanked with financial services, or make banking in the developed world a more pleasant experience.

“Startupbootcamp also provided a great venue and did a fantastic job on organizing the hack and looking after everyone involved.”
— – Giles

Having a traditional bank as a main supporter is incredible to see, especially with the amount of involvement they showed. DBS Bank even saw future potential in some ideas that were discussed at the event.

“DBS were very well organized and made every effort to understand the technology and work with the developers. All teams got to keep the IP for their ideas, and DBS could be working with some in the future to see how they can support them.”
— – Giles

Coming in third place was the team behind BlockIntel. Their product was a blockchain visualization tool that simplified analysis of transactions. The goal is to make suspicious transactions easier to spot, along with tracking the overall flow of money. BlockIntel received a prize of roughly $6,000 USD.

Second place belonged to NuBank, who sought to bring banking services to the Philippines. Their idea is to use existing trust systems in place, such as village elders, as bankers for their community. They would be in touch with a financial specialist who could verify all of their transactions using the blockchain, rather than simply hoping the funds are where they belong. Nubank received a prize of roughly $7,500 USD.

First place went to OmniChain and their system for making startup operations more transparent. Everything about the startup would be publicly accessible via the blockchain, making investing decisions easier to research. This could be the way that company data is presented in the near future, making the team rather ahead of the curve. OmniChain received a prize of roughly $11,300 USD for their efforts.

CEO of Asian bitcoin exchange Coins.ph Ron Hose had plenty of good things to say about the event as well, “I really feel like this event marked a milestone for blockchain tech in Asia.” Hose was one of the many big names present at last week’s event.

“Beyond emphasizing how valuable this technology is to solving banking problems and giving a platform for new ideas, the hackathon brought together great minds and industry influencers to think together about the future on blockchain and the banking industry as a whole.”
— – Ron Hose, CEO of Coins.ph

Events such as this will remain critical in the future, as blockchain technology becomes more widely known. As competition heats up innovation will become more rapid. And the hackathon wasn’t important solely for the cryptocurrency community – traditional financial systems could benefit from more events with such an open-minded attitude.