TOKEN2049 Singapore • 2025 Edition

TOKEN2049 Singapore Breaks All Records as World’s Largest Web3 Event with 25,000 Attendees Amid Unprecedented Demand

TOKEN2049 Singapore • 2025 Edition established itself as the largest and most diverse crypto and Web3 event globally, turning Marina Bay Sands into a "pop-up city." From October 1-2, 2025, over 25,000 industry leaders, entrepreneurs, investors, and policymakers from around the world gathered. The event featured more than 500 exhibitors and 7,000 companies from over 160 countries, with a significant presence of C-suite executives, underscoring the emphasis on institutional adoption, regulatory engagement, and cross-sector innovation. The turnout was remarkable, featuring an engaging array of discussions. The major move towards regulation and practical applications indicates significant growth for the sector. Notably, institutional DeFi and cross-chain solutions stand out. Events like TOKEN2049 play a crucial role in shaping the future of Web3!

Program and Experiences

The conference spanned all five levels of Marina Bay Sands, offering immersive experiences like rock-climbing walls, ziplines, pickleball courts, wellness activities, and upscale dining. TOKEN2049 Week, from September 29 to October 5, included over 1,000 side events such as workshops, coding competitions, networking sessions, investor discussions, and prominent social gatherings, establishing Singapore as a global blockchain hub.

Key Themes and Discussions

TOKEN2049 Singapore 2025 reflected the industry’s shift from retail speculation to a maturing, practical, and regulation-aware sector. Conference programming and side events emphasized:

• Institutional DeFi and compliance

• Tokenization of real-world assets (RWAs)

• Layer 1 and Layer 2 scaling solutions

• Cross-chain and multi-chain interoperability

• Advanced trading strategies and market structure

• The fusion of AI, blockchain, and autonomous agents

• The rise of Bitcoin ETFs and mainstream adoption

• Regulatory clarity and global policy trends with a special emphasis on Asia-Pacific leadership

Speaker Lineup and Notable Attendees

TOKEN2049 2025 drew some of the most prominent names from both crypto and traditional finance, solidifying its “Davos of digital assets” status. The speaker list included:

• Richard Teng (Binance)

• Anatoly Yakovenko (Solana)

• Balaji Srinivasan (The Network State, ex-Coinbase CTO)

• Arthur Hayes (Maelstrom, BitMEX)

• Vlad Tenev (Robinhood CEO)

• Paolo Ardoino (Tether CEO)

• Star Xu (OKX)

• Tom Lee (Fundstrat)

• Mike Novogratz (Galaxy Digital)

• Stani Kulechov (Aave)

• Edward Snowden (Whistleblower)

• Donald Trump Jr. (World Liberty Financial)

• Eric Trump (World Liberty Financial)

• Dan Morehead (Pantera Capital)

• Celebrity guests from sports, such as Lando Norris (F1) provided further mainstream appeal.

Major Highlights and Innovations

The inaugural TOKEN2049 Origins Hackathon showcased over 160 top developers competing in a 36-hour sprint to create innovative Web3 products, drawing strong investor interest and ecosystem support; meanwhile, exhibitors and major sponsors like Coinbase, OKX, and TRON highlighted leading infrastructure, trading, compliance, and consumer platforms at the event, which coincided with the Formula 1 Singapore Grand Prix, enhancing exclusive networking opportunities among investors and executives.

TOKEN2049 also hosted the second edition of NEXUS — now the world’s largest Web3 startup competition — held in collaboration with leading venture investors Dragonfly, Pantera, and Maelstrom. The TOKEN2049 NEXUS Startup Competition is recognized as the world’s largest Web3 and crypto startup contest, held annually as a centerpiece of the TOKEN2049 conference in Singapore. The competition brings together hundreds of early-stage crypto startups, narrowing the field to 10 finalists who pitch live on stage for equity-free prizes exceeding $100,000 and direct exposure to top investors, media, and the global Web3 community.

In 2025, the competition winner was Cap, a startup focused on building a stablecoin protocol backed by credible financial guarantees. Previous editions have seen winners like Battlebound, with successful fundraising rounds and subsequent growth after their exposure at TOKEN2049 NEXUS

TOKEN2049 demonstrated maturation with expanded institutional partnerships, visible regulatory participation, and a move toward legitimizing decentralized finance for mainstream adoption, while attendees enjoyed advanced training, coding workshops, wellness activities, and curated social events that seamlessly blended business with lifestyle

Major Announcements

Maelstrom to Debut Private Equity Unit to Target Crypto

Maelstrom, the family office of BitMEX co-founder Arthur Hayes, has launched MAELSTROM EQUITY, a new private equity division that, for the first time, welcomes external institutional capital. This division aims to acquire both controlling and minority stakes in crypto and crypto-related companies, focusing on those with potential for transformational growth and those facing liquidity challenges amid current industry disruptions. This move signifies a strategic expansion beyond venture and liquid investments into buyouts and growth equity, allowing Maelstrom to influence key areas in the evolving crypto sector.

KuCoin Introduces New Brand Identity "Trust First. Trade Next." with Adam Scott, Highlighting Trust as the Foundation of Crypto Innovation

KuCoin, a prominent global crypto platform founded on trust, has revealed its updated brand identity centered around the principle: “Trust First. Trade Next. Trust Is The Only Currency We Trade In.” This marks KuCoin’s evolution from its 2017 debut as “the crypto exchange for everyone” to its current role as “the crypto partner you can trust.”

The refreshed visual identity is a strategic update that aligns KuCoin’s image with its fundamental values, establishing it as a symbol of reliability in a volatile market while increasing accessibility for a worldwide audience. This change highlights KuCoin’s ongoing dedication to security, transparency, and empowering users in a constantly changing digital environment.

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MEXC Ventures Announces Second Strategic Investment in ENA, Total Commitment Reaches $30 Million

MEXC Ventures has made its second strategic investment in ENA, the governance token of the Ethena protocol, increasing its total investment commitment to $30 million. This follows MEXC Ventures' earlier $16 million strategic investment in Ethena, a prominent innovator in the stablecoin sector, along with MEXC's purchase of $20 million worth of USDe. Altogether, these investments amount to $66 million within the Ethena ecosystem. Cecilia Hsueh, Chief Strategy Officer at MEXC, stated, "Through the synergy of exchange operations, strategic investments, and project empowerment, MEXC acts as an industry enabler, offering comprehensive support that goes well beyond traditional capital deployment."

XAUt0 is Now Live on Celo

XAUt0, the omnichain version of Tether Gold (XAUt), is now available on Celo, an Ethereum Layer 2 designed for real-world applications. XAUt0 enhances the extensive Tether ecosystem on Celo, alongside native USDT, which has recently exceeded 6 million unique holders and has been utilized as a gas currency (through Celo’s fee abstraction) for over 119 million transactions. This launch provides Celo’s global ecosystem with access to tokenized gold, making one of the oldest value stores accessible to users in more than 150 countries.

Celo Becomes the First Payments-Focused Blockchain to Implement Nightfall Privacy Layer for Enterprise Transactions

The Celo Foundation has announced the launch of Nightfall, an open-source zero-knowledge privacy layer developed by EY, now operational as a Layer 3 on the Celo network. This represents the first deployment of Nightfall on a payments-focused blockchain, expanding Celo’s capabilities from consumer and P2P transactions to enterprise B2B payments—a sector expected to exceed $180 trillion in cross-border flows. Nightfall utilizes zero-knowledge proofs and ZK-ZK rollups to facilitate private, auditable transactions across various token standards at a fraction of traditional costs. By introducing confidentiality to public blockchain infrastructure, it opens up new opportunities for B2B payments, supply chain finance, and other enterprise applications where privacy and efficiency are essential.

Alpaca Introduces Network for Instant Tokenization of US Stock Market

Alpaca has unveiled its Instant Tokenization Network (ITN), an open, token-agnostic framework that allows institutions to mint and redeem U.S. stocks as tokenized equivalents seamlessly and around the clock. By eliminating settlement delays and directly connecting liquidity between traditional and tokenized markets, ITN tackles the inefficiencies that have historically affected tokenized assets. Launched at TOKEN2049 with partners like Backed, Ondo Finance, Dinari, and DRW, the network uses Solana as its settlement chain and aims to support the next wave of tokenized markets, which are expected to reach $10 trillion by 2030.

CFX CEO Discusses How Collaborative Regulation Spurs Crypto Innovation in Indonesia at TOKEN2049

CFX, Indonesia’s first licensed crypto exchange, is leading the nation’s emergence as a key digital asset hub through its innovative “Three-Pillar” market structure. Alongside a dedicated clearing house (KKI) and custodian (ICC), and under the oversight of OJK, CFX has established a reliable and transparent market that prevents fraud and upholds high governance standards. This framework has driven rapid growth, with 16.5 million registered investors and double-digit market expansion expected in 2025, positioning Indonesia to spearhead the next wave of crypto innovation, from stablecoins to tokenized RWAs.

Significance in the Industry

TOKEN2049 Singapore 2025 was more than just an industry gathering—it marked the mainstream acceptance of Web3 and digital assets, shaping key narratives for the future. With an emphasis on scalable blockchain infrastructure, institutional DeFi, asset tokenization, and regulatory frameworks, the event highlighted the industry's significant evolution from its speculative beginnings, serving as a central point for global innovation and industry direction.

TOKEN2049 Singapore 2025 was a pivotal event, cementing Singapore’s position as a global crypto hub and setting new standards for scale, thought leadership, and the integration of blockchain technology into social and institutional frameworks.

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