Money 20/20 Asia Day 2 & 3 Recap
Summarizing session details and my overall thoughts on the event.
Wrapping up coverage from Bangkok - the last few days of the conference flew by! Here's a link to the remaining recaps that were published on LinkedIn that you can access in compiled format:
CBDCs - The New Frontier of Money?
Riding the Dragon's Back: Hong Kong's Bold Advance in Digital Assets and CBDCs
Virtual Coins, Digital Currencies and Crypto Custody – Marathon or Sprint
Some closing thoughts:
I enjoyed the folks I connected with, but I think that the event could significantly benefit from more breakout sessions where there are group discussions and not just panels on the stage talking to people, and one-on-ones which the attendees have to do all the work in organizing. I think the power of collective information sharing cannot be understated (this is something we are working on here at Fintech Compliance Chronicles, so stay tuned).
I didn't get to attend either of the post-event networking events, but in the same vein as the above point, I hope future attendees especially those that are coming in large groups from sponsor companies reflect the spirit of NY Fintech Week, Fintech Meetup and M2020 US and organize side events, ensuring folks can curate their own experience even more based on their interests. I don't think the convention center being a bit isolated from the rest of Sukhumvit/downtown Bangkok helps matters, but the "unofficial" "afterparties" are where a lot of the truly meaningful connections happen especially since the groups get a lot smaller and niche/focused. Having recently organized a side event of our own during NY Fintech Week, happy to help facilitate or sponsor next time!
Back to the panels, there was one session I attended (not covered formally) where it was clear the speakers weren't really answering the moderator's questions and not presenting any solutions to the problem statement - so the moderator did an audible and opened it up to the crowd to grill the speakers. Unfortunately most of us were caught off guard/too shy to have our own M2020 stage moment, but this got me thinking about whether audience Q&A as a default might not be the way to go for all sessions, or at least use an app as some conferences do. Audience engagement could make these even more exciting.
I didn't have time to get any merch/swag, and sadly missed out on experiencing the arcade/gaming area of the convention floor, but now I want to know how I can get some cool M2020 swag. If you can hook us up, DM/email me.
The food was delicious, facilities clean, and I appreciate the hard work by all the service staff of the Queen Sikrit Convention Center and the M2020 team.
Enjoy some closing pictures from my camera roll:
That's all from Bangkok! See you next week back on our usual grind and hope you enjoyed our special coverage of the conference. Thanks again for reading and thanks again Money20/20 for inviting us as press to cover the event - truly appreciated!
(Note - all views are those of Fintech Compliance Chronicles/my personal views and not affiliated with any other organization)