Background: Throughout my time in Vietnam, i hear a lot about the insecurity of day to day people about Cryptocurrency. Knowing Policypal’s goal to make cryptoasset safety the holy grail, I chased to get insights on Blockchain Adoption with PolicyPal Val Yap during the Huobi Blockchain Festival.

1. What impressed you about Blockchain when you learned about the technology?

Val: The two most impressive features are definitely transparency and immutability. The ability to support digital currency is impressive, but the underlying features of blockchain technology are much more impressive to me. Transparency for blockchain means that all changes to the system are visible for everyone and immutability means that changes or new additions are permanent. For me, this is impressive because it head-on tackles the huge issue of fraud and trust found within the insurance industry today, which PolicyPal Network aims to eliminate.

Iki Comments:

1) Transparency

The blockchain is said to be transparent because the holding and transaction of each public address are open to viewing. You can easily view the holdings as well as the transactions which have been carried out and this kind of transparency has not existed in the financial system before. It also adds a level of accountability that has not existed before. One potential use case is to improve the level of transparency in financial institutions as today funds could be used without the original client’s knowledge.

2) Immutability

Blockchain is designed so as to be immutable. Immediately when a block is written to a the blockchain, it can’t be changed again. For instance in an excel spreadsheet, you can add columns, rows, edit or delete the existing ones but this is not possible with blockchain. This shows that databases and spreadsheet are mutable. However, a blockchain is designed in such a way that once a piece of information goes in, you can depend on it because it can’t be changed.

2. What do you think are the Blockchain adoption challenges?

Val: The major Blockchain adoption challenges right now are scalability and public perception. Scalability is tied to the technology itself, and with increasingly rapid developments I believe it will soon be solved. Public perception of blockchain technology as “unsafe” or “not private” will be changed when blockchain startups continue to show that their solutions really do work. PolicyPal Network is proud to be one of the projects showing the public the true value of blockchain technology by building insurance products using blockchain technology!

Iki Comments:

1) Scalability

The challenges revolving around wide acceptance of blockchain is as a result of scalability. While this has resulted in detailed researches about how the network and blockchain can be helped, to scale; Conversations around proposals vary and would likely take a significant amount of time. Moreover, scaling methods need to be verified and vetted thoroughly before implementation into ledgers. Issues concerning scalability should be addressed effectively so that wide adoption of blockchain can be possible.

2) Unsafe

Some people consider blockchain to be unsafe because of fraudulent activities and the occurrence of fraudulent coins. There are however several regulations which are in place so as to ensure the safety of the users and also protect their identity.

3. People in Vietnam are afraid of Crypto / Blockchain and think it may be danger. What do you think is needed to turn this around?

Val: In my opinion there are two things which are needed right now. First, an increased understanding of what the crypto and blockchain space is and what it is not. The most important thing, I think, is to understand the difference between the two and how they are both being used in different ways. Secondly, everyone active in the blockchain space needs to take responsibility for showing and proving to the public what blockchain really can accomplish.

For example, PolicyPal Network continuously updates and provides explanations regarding our product developments and underlying technology via our community channels. You can read more here if you are interested: https://medium.com/@policypalnet

Iki Comments:

1) Education on Crypto / Blockchain 

It is crucial for people to understand crypto so that they would know everything about it as its relevance. This would also give them insight into how what cryptos are and what they are not. Some of the best practices for blockchain education include organizing hackathon for students, conferences as well as seminars so that all the principles regarding the blockchain as well as its usage would be known to the public.

2) Communication

Everyone would love to keep their communication private and there are several applications that cannot be trusted with this. Blockchain, being a secure application and configured well, would ensure that communication between two entities will not reveal to a third party. While standard secrecy methods like cryptography, the content of the message can be protected from being accessed by unauthorized users.

4. If education is a need – what do you think is the approach needed for the community to better understand the potentials of Blockchain?

Val: There are several approaches, but I think that one important approach is to provide opportunities for students to learn about blockchain. This past weekend PolicyPal Network hosted a Hackathon focused on blockchain and insurance, which a lot of students attended! In general, it is important to communicate and talk about blockchain technology in all sorts of forums.

Iki Comments

Blockchain hackathon helps in the education of student regarding blockchain and also exposes them to wider horizons. There are several hackathons for students to get explosure and earn cash. Some of them include the blockchain hackathon by the government of karnataku in January, and ESSHACKATHON where a million dollars is set aside for.

Also, a hackathon has just been concluded by PolicyPal’s which focused mainly on blockchain and insurance. Several students attended and this hackathon provides exposure as well as education to them. For example, PolicyPal Network continuously updates and provides explanations regarding our product developments and underlying technology via our community channels. You can read more here if you are interested: https://medium.com/@policypalnet

5. In 2 sentences, what do you want to tell / share to the Vietnamese community today?

• The potential in Blockchain technology is just beginning to be unleashed, and I assure you that there will be much more to come in the near future!
• Join our telegram group (@policypalnetwork) or follow us on twitter (@PolicyPalNET) to learn more about how blockchain technology and PolicyPal Network is revolutionising the insurance industry!