APUBCC celebrating its 1st Anniversary of promoting Blockchain and Crypto fundamentals and knowledge in one of the hottest technology areas.
Time flies! In 2021, plans to establish Asia’s first and largest blockchain and crypto-based club in Malaysia began to unfold. And this year in 2022, the Asia Pacific University Blockchain and Cryptocurrency Club (APUBCC), celebrates its 1st anniversary.
Many people are unaware that Malaysia is the world's sixth largest Bitcoin mining nation and one of the best countries for blockchain technology startups!
Our tropical country's technology ecosystem is so vast and accessible that it has become one of the world's premier locations for both-based projects.
However, we are not as well-known as Portugal, Switzerland, Germany, Singapore, or Malta, but Malaysia's blockchain and crypto landscape is gradually rising in the world rankings, and to advance as a blockchain and crypto-friendly country, we will need to produce more experts through focused studies in these areas.
Team behind APUBCC
Front row, from left: Meera Eeswaran, Yudhishthra Sugumaran, Lee Shuen Rui, Ng Hui Chen and Suresh Naidu Sadasivan are key figures in the APUBCC leadership, which includes both lecturers and students, while FinTech Academy: APU Financial Trading Centre prepares APUBCC members for the blockchain and crypto ecosystem.
APUBCC, a university-led initiative, was founded on 12 August 2021, with 30 members and has since grown by leaps and bounds to over 420 members within a year.
The club is led by three blockchain and crypto enthusiasts within the university teaching and consulting team, Ms Meera Eeswaran and Ms Ng Hui Chen, both Senior Lecturers & Programme Leaders from the School of Accounting & Finance, as well as Mr Suresh Naidu Sadasivan, APU’s Senior Blockchain Consultant.
APUBCC aims to spread awareness about blockchain and crypto via discord channels, discussions, research, gamification, seminars, workshops, hackathons, and conferences, with the ultimate goal of promoting technology learning, as well as helping students and society to overcome common misconceptions.
Members comprise students from various levels and programmes including Information Technology (IT), Engineering, Accounting & Finance, Marketing, Management, Psychology, and Quantitative Studies, who are all interested in learning more about blockchain technology and crypto.
“Early exposure to this technology can aid in building the youth community, expanding their knowledge in the blockchain space whilst promoting a cultural bond. As the Malay proverb goes, ‘Pemuda Harapan Bangsa, Pemudi Tiang Negara' (Young Men Nation's Hope, Young Women Nation's Pillar), youth will be the country's backbone,” said Ms Hui Chen and Ms Meera.
“The grassroots level is essential for promoting blockchain and crypto because every thousand miles in a journey begins with a single step,” said Mr Suresh.
“APUBCC provides a safe learning environment and exchange of ideas, allowing us to grow as a club with a better understanding of this technology. We need an ecosystem that is important for both the university and the blockchain industry.”
Activities and events
Shiyu Serah (red shirt), a renowned NFT artist, has been invited to exhibit her NFT artwork at APU.
Committees under the APUBBCC have been very active in organising several events and activities, including a beginner-level talk session titled NFT-Digital World of Wonder by Imperium Universe CEO Mr Jason Kwong and Access Malaysia Vice President Mr Jason Chew; a visit to an NFT exhibition as part of a team-building activity.
Distinguished NFT artist, Ms Shiyu Serah, was invited to showcase her NFT artworks collection: Harmony Under the Sea, at APU on 22 April 2022, followed by a speech by Mr Jason Kwong. Fun activities such as the Crypto Trading Competition, NFT minting, and more are to come in the future.
Meanwhile, Access Blockchain Association Malaysia (ACCESS Malaysia) connects APUBCC with more professionals from various industries and backgrounds, allowing for a learning experience that goes beyond internet searches alone, and the collaboration has many benefits for APUBCC members.
Due to their active collaborations with the industry, APUBCC is frequently invited to various talks given by other communities, such as Web3 Night, 3six9 NFT Marketplace introduction, and BNB Chain Conference.
Attending these fun and insightful gatherings enables APUBCC members to converse, exchange ideas, and learn from real-world professionals, allowing them to grow with a better understanding of blockchain technology and crypto.
Some of the members have even taken part in substrate developers training and won a mini hackathon jointly organized by APU and Octopus Network, a multichain crypto network created to bootstrap and run decentralized application chains, aka Appchains.
Empowering APU students
Innovative students: APU channelled the right medium to innovate their students.
APUBCC President Lee Shuen Rui stated that the club is always looking for the best and different approaches that will benefit the members' knowledge pool in blockchain and crypto-related topics because the majority of its members are beginners looking to start a career in Blockchain.
“One of the initiatives our club has been working on to provide information for beginners is the informal discussion that the committees have with club members every Friday, and they are welcome to join and contribute their opinions and thoughts about blockchain and cryptocurrency.
“APUBCC also released podcasts in collaboration with APU's Student Representative Council (SRC) that discuss the technologies in depth, in addition to actively uploading meaningful and insightful postings on APUBCC's socmed. We currently have educational videos on Facebook, YouTube, and Instagram for our followers to learn more about Web3 developments,” he said.
APUBCC Vice President Yudhishthra Sugumaran added that the club's future direction will be extremely exciting, with forward-thinking initiatives aimed at empowering APU students to use their unique skill sets to contribute to the growth of the blockchain ecosystem locally and globally.
“A major drawback to the adoption of blockchain technology is the onboarding component as there is a steep learning curve for developers to build decentralized applications and for the public to use these applications.
“Strategic collaborations with industry partners such as ACCESS Malaysia, KopiDAO, Metapac, and others help in creating a progressive environment where ideas are exchanged, visions are shared, and projects built on the blockchain are supported through various means.
“These initiatives are important alongside educating students about blockchain, there should be ideas on how to create more use cases for blockchain in different industries. APU has never been short on innovative students, so it is only right that efforts are channelled through the right medium to innovate for the blockchain,” he said.
For more information on APUBCC, please visit @apubcc on Facebook/Instagram, Asia Pacific University of Technology & Innovation (APU) on YouTube, and www.apu.edu.my.
APU’s purpose-built campus with ultra-modern design is strategically located in Technology Park Malaysia (TPM), Kuala Lumpur.