STIPS|FinTech on world tour: Conquering Europe and Asia
September turned out to be a busy period for the STIPS|FinTech team that
started out the month with a world tour, during which the platform presenters introduced their project to new audiences, including prospective investors, foundations and even mass media.
Europe and Asia were selected as the main roadshow destinations. Nikita
Kutsenko, Chief Marketing Officer, set off on the Blockchain Cruise organized
by CoinsBank and met industry celebrities, while Dmitry Kotegov (CEO) and
Vasili Belokryletski (CBO) focused on conquering China and South Korea.
Beijing, the capital of China, was the first stopover destination during the
Asian tour. There works Jeff Frey, STIPS|FinTech’s marketing and investment
advisor. Being a citizen of Switzerland and a former attaché at the Swiss
Embassy in Beijing, he has developed an extensive network of contacts in the
region. It was he who organized meetings between the STIPS team and its
prospective investors and partners — in total, there were around ten
negotiations held during the visit.
STIPS’ partners in negotiations were different foundations and contracting
parties. The meeting with a large US-China investment fund, the name of
which has been withheld under the NDA terms and conditions, was quite
promising.
It should be noted that the presentation of the STIPS|Fintech platform made a most favorable impression on the company representatives who approved the further development of relations and signing of the non-disclosure agreement. The parties have embarked on the due diligence process including financial examination and documentation review for the purpose of potential
investment.
The next destination in our itinerary was Shanghai — China’s biggest city and
financial hub. On September 7–8, it hosted Slush Shanghai 2018, a world-
class event, which brought together 15 thousand attendees, including 1,000
startups, 500 investors and 500 media representatives. Almost concurrently,
on September 6–7, Shanghai hosted another interesting, though smaller-scale
event — the LendIt Fintech China 2018 Conference and Expo for innovations
in financial services.
During these events the STIPS|FinTech team had meetings with prospective
investors and contracting parties. It is notable that the STIPS project caught
local media’s interest. Dmitry Kotegov gave an interview to a local TV channel. He told the Shanghai journalists about the capabilities and key features of the STIPS platform. Besides, the team had a meeting with its contracting party Vinci, one of the leading PR agencies.
On September 9–10, the international blockchain elite gathered in Hong Kong, a special administrative region of China, at the Unblock Community
Conference focusing on how to build, grow and monetize the community
around blockchain projects. The STIPS team held ten P2P meetings with
prospective investors, introducing them to its project.
The investors representing Asian venture funds praised the STIPS platform
and took a keen interest in its background and prospects. At the moment, the
STIPS team is conducting negotiations and exchanging information with most
of them.
The final destination in the Asian itinerary was Seoul, the capital of South
Korea. On September 12–13, it hosted the Ethereum Classic Summit that
brought together representatives of the world’s largest blockchain companies,
including ETCDEV, IOHK, DCG, ETC Labs, Coinbase, Circle, Ethereum
Foundation and many others.
During their stay in Seoul, the STIPS|FinTech team members met
representatives of Circle and Grayscale, two global leaders in the financial
industry.
The Boston-based startup Circle was founded in 2013. It develops and
promotes peer-to-peer payment technology. Its Circle Pay mobile platform
allows users to hold, send and receive traditional fiat currencies.
Interestingly, in 2015 Circle was the first cryptocurrency company to receive a
New York BitLicense allowing it to offer digital-currency services in the state.
In 2016, it was granted the first electronic money license in Great Britain. In
addition, in February 2018, the company acquired Poloniex, a leading token
exchange platform.
The interest in the STIPS|FinTech project from the major player on the
cryptocurrency market was of special importance. The meeting resulted in the
ongoing negotiation between the STIPS team and the Circle regarding
mutually beneficial placement of widgets on the STIPS platform. If the
consensus is reached, the resulting integration will significantly expand the
functionality available both to STIPS|FinTech users and Circle clients.
The project also sparked the interest of the representatives of Grayscale, the
trusted authority on digital currency investing and a subsidiary of the Digital Currency Group, the most influential venture capital investor. The preliminary meeting resulted in the negotiations that are already in full swing.
The Asian roadshow is over. Investors and professionals from all over the
world highly praised the STIPS|FinTech platform, thus proving the applicability of the ideas behind the project and their relevance for the blockchain industry.
We have covered only half of the tour. Next time Nikita Kutsenko will share his
impressions from the Blockchain Cruise, when he was sailing with Roger Ver,
Charlie Lee and other authorities in the cryptocurrency world.
