Blockcast 78 | Jeff Feng Talks Sei Network's Vision for the Future of Trading

In this episode of Blockcast, host Takatoshi Shibayama meets Jeff Feng, co-founder of Sei Labs, who was in town for Token 2049, to discuss the evolving landscape of cryptocurrency and blockchain technology with a focus on Singapore's unique position in the crypto ecosystem. 

Jeff shared his personal journey into the crypto world, emphasizing the core value proposition of financial transactions and the importance of decentralized finance (DeFi). The conversation explored the integration of blockchain with social applications, the challenges of enterprise solutions, and the potential for genetic data ownership through blockchain. Additionally, the pair discussed the future of stablecoins and consumer behavior, highlighting the growing adoption in emerging markets.

Key Discussion Points:

• The Singapore Advantage : Jeff explains why Singapore is a vital hub for Sei Labs and the broader crypto ecosystem. He notes that while the local market is small, the density of talent is "unbelievable," making it a crucial base for expansion across APAC, including China and Korea. The country's regulatory clarity and English-speaking population also make it a magnet for global companies.
• The Core Thesis of Crypto: Jeff argues a powerful and simple thesis: the single, proven use case of blockchain is trading digital assets. If that's the core value, then solving the trading problem is the most important issue in distributed systems.
• The Sei Architecture: To solve the trading problem, Sei Labs combined the greatest strengths of two major layer-1 chains:
  • Ethereum's strength in its EVM/Solidity development framework, which has a network effect comparable to languages like English, making it too entrenched to replace.
  • Solana's strength in simply using updated hardware for a meaningful performance uplift.
• Beyond DeFi – New Web3 Use Cases: While DeFi is a core component, Jeff highlights that Sei's high-speed infrastructure is enabling major non-DeFi applications:
  • Gaming: Gaming is leagues above any other chain in terms of user base, as fast financial transactions are critical to almost every Web3 game.
  • Social: Say hosts one of the largest social apps in crypto, where the demand for speed and throughput mirrors the requirements of a high-performance trading exchange.
• Blockchain and Social Media: Jeff dismissed the common "own your data" ethos, stating that most users simply prioritize a "good, simple, fast experience." The primary connection is the shared need for high-throughput infrastructure to handle rapidly loading content and integrated mini-purchases, tips, and e-commerce.
• Retail vs. Enterprise: While many large organizations are adopting EVM-first infrastructure like Say, Jeff insisted that any successful blockchain must be "user-first." Retail users act as early adopters who test performance and applications, paving the way for more hesitant enterprise adoption.
• The 23andMe Acquisition: Jeff discussed the foundation's excitement around acquiring a 23andMe business unit. The goal is to tokenize one of the most uniquely sensitive and scaled datasets in the world—genetic data—to give power and decision-making back to the users who contributed it. This move represents an attempt to create a "new type of asset" that could attract a brand new consumer base and ignite the next major crypto bull run, which hasn't been seen since the 2021 NFT boom.

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Blockcast is hosted by Head of APAC at Ledger, Takatoshi Shibayama. Previous episodes of Blockcast can be found here, with guests like Fredrick Gregaard (Cardano Foundation), Daren Guo (Reap), Yat Siu (Animoca Brands), Kean Gilbert (Lido), Joey Isaacson (Nook), Kapil Dhiman (Quranium) Eric van Miltenburg (Ripple), Davide Menegaldo (Neon EVM), Anastasia Plotnikova (Fideum), Jeremy Tan (Singapore parliament candidate), Hassan Ahmed (Coinbase) and more on our recent shows.