Vivek Gupta, EVP Engineering with Aabha Bakaya

CoinDCX’s EVP Engineering Vivek Gupta is in conversation with Aabha Bakaya, senior editor & anchor, Business Today TV. This insightful conversation is centric around Blockchain and Web3.

Aabha begins with asking Vivek about the Blockchain technology, why he feels it is gaining prominence and its merits for the future. Vivek talks about how Blockchain technology is distributed through a centralised public ledger across networks. The key elements of Blockchain technology are:

- Public

- Accessible To All

- Cryptographically Secure

- Immutable

- Decentralised

Thus the power of what can be done with Blockchain is immense as it shifts the focus back into the hands of the participants of the ecosystem, making it a transparent platform.

Aabha asks about the use cases for Web 3, the examples and adoption rate seen in India vs globally. To which Vivek answers by first talking about the functionality of Web 2.0.

In web 2.0, the platforms are built on aggregating users and user data. He takes the examples of Facebook or Instagram, and how they get value from user data, and in turn the network effect from which they drive value for the users. Here, it is important to log the users and their data, to make it a prime source of getting competitive advantage and thus acts as a vast arena for micro-targeting.

On the contrary, Blockchain and Web 3  have proposed a whole different model;  this is a totally new digital ecosystem, a fundamental shift, creating value that is accessible to all participants in the ecosystem. This is based on the premise that there is an alternative to exploiting users for data. This creates more value for everyone including the platform itself. Based on this, we have already seen the growth and adoption of blockchain and a lot of disruption pertaining to it. Be it fashion, sports, pharma, supply chain, entertainment and fintech.

Additionally, Vivek explains how any innovation starts with fintech. Be it adoption of the internet or Web 3. Since the users have control, it creates more equal value. Today, more and more ecosystems are growing. By 2022, spending on blockchain solutions by businesses is factored to $11.7 billion. Thus, a high level of growth is expected in this space.

We are also seeing such patterns in government to government and government to citizen projects. Examples are in the domains of tax registration, healthcare, food supply chain, procurement and identity management.

In the next 7-10 years Web 3 will become the centerpiece of economics, transcending across multiple domains.

Aabha also asks about the ways of leveraging blockchain to expand businesses. Vivek discusses how having a large database that is accessible to all, combined with computing power will create innumerable opportunities and possibilities. For example-  smart contracts that allows logic driven trust to be built between two trustless systems. Here the intermediary party is replaced by logic.

Talking about businesses, CoinDCX has launched CoinDCX Ventures, to support the growth and development of a budding crypto startup ecosystem.

Vivek highlights how the crypto space in India alone is in excess of $10 billion. Government projects related to blockchain can add $5.1 billion to India's GDP. Workforce for global tech in India plays a key role in driving innovation. The next Facebook, Amazon, Google etc. can all come from Web 3 technology.

In order for this to happen, Vivek asserts that India needs to grow and build on talent to support. India needs to have regulated clarity from the government that will go a long way in driving forward an exponential growth in blockchain innovation.

In conclusion, we can expect to see huge potential for India to establish itself as a global leader in driving forward Web 3.