Table Of Content10949_9789813238633_tp.indd 1 4/6/18 4:41 PM
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10949_9789813238633_tp.indd 2 4/6/18 4:41 PM
Published by
World Scientific Publishing Co. Pte. Ltd.
5 Toh Tuck Link, Singapore 596224
USA office: 27 Warren Street, Suite 401-402, Hackensack, NJ 07601
UK office: 57 Shelton Street, Covent Garden, London WC2H 9HE
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Names: Lee, David (David Kuo Chen), author. | Low, Linda, author.
Title: Inclusive fintech : blockchain, cryptocurrency and ICO /
David Kuo Chuen Lee (Singapore University of Social Sciences, Singapore),
Linda Low (Singapore University of Social Sciences, Singapore).
Description: New York : World Scientific, [2018] | Includes bibliographical references and index.
Identifiers: LCCN 2018012983 | ISBN 9789813238633 (hardcover) |
ISBN 9789813272767 (softcover)
Subjects: LCSH: Finance--Technological innovations. | Blockchains (Databases) |
Bitcoin. | Electronic funds transfers.
Classification: LCC HG173 .L3796 2018 | DDC 332.1/78--dc23
LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2018012983
British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication Data
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.
Copyright © 2018 by World Scientific Publishing Co. Pte. Ltd.
All rights reserved. This book, or parts thereof, may not be reproduced in any form or by any means,
electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording or any information storage and retrieval
system now known or to be invented, without written permission from the publisher.
For photocopying of material in this volume, please pay a copying fee through the Copyright Clearance
Center, Inc., 222 Rosewood Drive, Danvers, MA 01923, USA. In this case permission to photocopy
is not required from the publisher.
For any available supplementary material, please visit
http://www.worldscientific.com/worldscibooks/10.1142/10949#t=suppl
Desk Editor: Jiang Yulin
Typeset by Stallion Press
Email: [email protected]
Printed in Singapore
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June4,2018 15:23 InclusiveFinTech 9inx6in b3207-fm pagev
Contents
Foreword vii
Preface ix
Chapter 1: Overview 1
Chapter 2: Digital Currency, Bitcoin and
Cryptocurrency 33
Chapter 3: Introduction to Initial Crypto-Token
Offering (ICO) 83
Chapter 4: The Characteristics of Token Investors 125
Chapter 5: Blockchain: An Introduction 173
Chapter 6: Blockchain: A Technical Introduction 207
Chapter 7: Inclusive FinTech 259
Chapter 8: FinTech in Singapore 307
Chapter 9: FinTech in ASEAN 381
v
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vi Inclusive FinTech
Chapter 10: Regional Trends and FinTech Future 437
Appendix: Interviews, Podcasts and Videos 449
References 483
Index 499
June4,2018 15:23 InclusiveFinTech 9inx6in b3207-fm pagevii
Foreword
When Professor Barry Marshall, Nobel Laureate in Physiology or
Medicine, contacted me some months ago regarding my knowledge
on cryptocurrencies, I had to confess that I did not know much,
if at all, on the matter. I decided I would instead bring along my
good friendandformercolleague, ProfessorDavid Lee,to discussthe
subject together. Sure enough, when we met over dinner, the night
was spent not chatting about health and medicine, nor economic
growth and recession. Instead, we deliberated over cryptocurrencies,
and Professor David Lee, as expected, answered every question that
Professor Marshall brought up.
Inclusive FinTech is a consolidation of Professor David Lee’s and
Professor Linda Low’s knowledge and expertise on this new and
emerging topic. Not much has been written about the subject and it
is a timely book that elucidates the cryptocurrency market, and the
linkages to large FinTech companies.
Newfinancialinstrumentswillcontinuetodevelopinthefinancial
markets of tomorrow, and while this might be easier for the newer
generations to understand as they are well-acquainted with the
digital economy, it is perhaps more difficult for the older and in-
between generations.
The key question is: Are cryptocurrencies here to stay? There
are costs and benefits, and it requires a great deal of changing mind-
sets and deeper understanding for investors, financial institutions
and policy regulators. For example, regulating cryptocurrencies is
vii
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viii Inclusive FinTech
difficult as it does not fall under the jurisdiction of any country.
Regulation could strip away the attractiveness to investors. The
value of cryptocurrencies is also highly volatile and dependent
on market sentiments. Yet, there are also benefits such as the
potential for microfinancing developing countries which lack access
to formal credit markets. Nevertheless, we continue to observe that
cryptocurrency hedge funds are increasingly being formed, and it
only seems like cryptocurrencies are here to stay.
This book is a useful reference to complement classic financial
textbooks, with a modern take and the business perspectives of
financial technologies, describing with clarity the concepts of new
finance, trends in FinTech, blockchain, as well as Initial Crypto-
Token Offerings. It provides a systematic and logical presentation
of the key cryptocurrencies today, and sieves out the myths and
misconceptions from the realities of the subject. The book covers
applications in the context of China, US, Australia, India, ASEAN,
Japan, and Singapore. It is an insightful and practical resource, and
an enjoyable read for experts and the general public alike.
Professor Euston Quah
President
Economic Society of Singapore
Professor and Head of Economics
Director, Economic Growth Centre
Nanyang Technological University, Singapore
Editor
Singapore Economic Review
June4,2018 15:23 InclusiveFinTech 9inx6in b3207-fm pageix
Preface
“Banks must be trusted to hold our money and transfer it
electronically, but they lend it out in waves of credit bubbles with
barely a fraction in reserve. We have to trust them with our privacy,
trust them not to let identity thieves drain our accounts. Their
1
massive overhead costs make micropayments impossible.”
— Satoshi Nakamoto
“The Times 03/Jan/2009 Chancellor on brink of second bailout for
2
banks.”
— Satoshi Nakamoto
The word “FinTech” is an invention in 2014 in response to
the failure of traditional financial institutions to innovate despite
the huge capital and technology at their disposal. The onset of the
Global Financial Crisis (GFC) saw the emergence of bitcoin, a new
centralised e-cash by the accumulated efforts of cryptographers, and
invented by an anonymous group or a person by the name Satoshi
Nakamoto. A few years before that in 2004, a centralised form of
digital cash online payment was already born and mass adopted in
China going by the name Alipay. The Chinese invented the term
“Internet Finance” and that was 10 years before “FinTech” was first
1http://p2pfoundation.ning.com/forum/topics/bitcoin-open-source
2https://imgur.com/pGYXHJh
ix
