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Zhou Xin

The world’s largest cryptocurrency conference, Token2049, kicked off in Singapore on Wednesday, attracting a record-breaking 25,000 attendees amid growing adoption of digital assets by institutions and individuals globally, partly driven by a friendlier regulatory environment in the US.
Participants from more than 160 countries formed a queue stretching hundreds of metres outside the Marina Bay Sands convention centre in the morning. The two-day event features five simultaneous forums and hundreds of industry-related booths, complemented by live music, coffee stands and even a tattoo station.
Donald Trump Jnr, the oldest son of US President Donald Trump and co-founder of World Liberty Financial, was among the speakers.
“It was a year ago on this very stage, they were making fun of what we’re trying to do, and now we’re the fastest-growing stablecoin ever,” he said, promoting his venture and USD1, its stablecoin, to an enthusiastic crowd. “I think we’re doing pretty good.”
The annual gathering takes place at a pivotal moment, following a shift in the US regulatory approach to the cryptocurrency industry.
The Trump administration’s supportive stance and promise to position America as a “bitcoin superpower” are opening doors for traditional institutions and investors to engage more actively with stablecoins and other crypto-based assets.

Tim McCourt, global head of equities, forex and alternative products at US financial service firm CME Group, said it was an “exciting time for institutional adoption of crypto”, noting that some research showed engagement had tripled this year.
“Every year we say it’s better than last year. It’s true again this year,” he said.
Hunter Horsley, co-founder and CEO of Bitwise Asset Management, attributed the rise in adoption to the US regulatory changes and the proliferation of new investment vehicles like crypto exchange-traded funds.
“For the first time, mainstream investors – from wealth management to sovereign [wealth funds], hedge funds, institutional asset owners and retirement accounts – are all engaging and stepping forward,” he said.
Heath Tarbert, a former US government official and former chairman of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, now president of stablecoin company Circle, highlighted the growing demand for US-dollar stablecoins, such as USDC, which he said enabled users to send money “seamlessly and securely anywhere in the world”, as simple as “sending an email”.
Beyond crypto adoptions, the event’s agenda includes unconventional topics. Arthur Hayes, who, at age 40, is known as the youngest African-American crypto billionaire, delivered a 20-minute talk laced with expletives, themed “Bastille Day: celebrating France’s exit from the euro”.

Balaji Srinivasan, former chief technology officer of cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase and a former general partner at venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz, delivered the opening speech, promoting concepts from his book, The Network State. He envisioned a future where “crypto-identity” could replace “fiat identity” like passports, reshaping societal structures.
“We know fiat currency is going to zero, so you need [bitcoin],” Srinivasan told a packed room of T-shirt-clad attendees. “Fiat identity is too, so you may need to go Satoshi,” he said, referring to the enigmatic Satoshi Nakamoto, the creator of bitcoin whose true identity remains a mystery.
In another highlight, Tom Lee, co-founder of research firm Fundstrat and chairman of ether treasury firm BitMine Immersion Technologies, shared his vision for the future.
He predicted that bitcoin’s value would surpass that of gold, and Ethereum could become the largest ecosystem in the US financial market – a development reminiscent of the end of the gold standard in 1971. As of this week, BitMine was the world’s second-largest holder of ether, with more than 2.65 million tokens.
In addition to the main events spanning five massive floors, Token2049 is hosting more than 1,000 side events organised by crypto start-ups jostling for attention and funding.
At one such event on Tuesday night at a seaside bar, participants enjoyed barbecue and an abundant flow of alcohol while discussing regulation, technology and sensitive topics, such as using crypto to skirt capital account controls for mainland Chinese clients.


A headline on an earlier version of this story incorrectly stated the number of attendees at the event. The figure has been corrected.


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Crypto enthusiasts from around the globe descend on the city state, preaching a future where blockchain-based technology dominates


Crypto enthusiasts from around the globe descend on the city state, preaching a future where blockchain-based technology dominates.


Singapore’s Token2049, world’s biggest crypto event, draws 25,000 amid US policy shift

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}Crypto enthusiasts from around the globe descend on the city state, preaching a future where blockchain-based technology dominates

Crypto enthusiasts from around the globe descend on the city state, preaching a future where blockchain-based technology dominates