What Was Philippine Blockchain Week 2023?
Philippine Blockchain Week 2023 was held in Manila, Philippines, from 18 to 22 September 2023. A five-day blockchain community week bringing together Filipino blockchain developers, crypto investors, and Web3 founders for conferences, hackathons, and community events exploring blockchain's evolution in the Philippines beyond its famous play-to-earn heritage. The official page sat on the Philippine Blockchain Week site. The Philippines had developed one of the world's most significant crypto adoption stories through Axie Infinity's play-to-earn model, and the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) had established a VASP licensing framework — Virtual Asset Service Provider registration — making Manila an unusually structured Southeast Asian crypto regulatory environment by 2023. Check the crypto events calendar and our crypto summits.
Key Themes at Philippine Blockchain Week 2023
The five-day blockchain week agenda covered: BSP's VASP licensing framework and Philippine crypto regulatory evolution; DeFi and Web3 gaming beyond play-to-earn's peak cycle; blockchain remittance applications for the Philippines' massive OFW economy; and NFT and creator economy for Filipino digital creators. The Philippine blockchain week's most commercially-significant context was remittances: the Philippines receives among the world's highest per-capita overseas remittance volumes, making blockchain payment and remittance applications particularly commercially-relevant. Many guests tracked broader blockchain events through CoinGabbar.
How BSP Licensing and Play-to-Earn Heritage Made Manila the Right Host
BSP had established a VASP framework under Circular 1108, requiring crypto exchanges to register as Virtual Currency Exchanges — one of Southeast Asia's most formalised crypto regulatory structures. The post-Axie play-to-earn era in 2023 had the Philippine blockchain community expanding beyond gaming into broader Web3 applications: DeFi, creator economy, and remittance infrastructure. Manila's large OFW community — millions of Filipino workers sending remittances home from abroad — gave blockchain remittance applications a uniquely large and commercially-motivated domestic user base. See CoinGabbar's crypto conferences page for more shows.
Impact of Philippine Blockchain Week 2023 on the Philippine Blockchain Ecosystem
A five-day Philippine blockchain week in Manila advanced the ecosystem through post-play-to-earn-evolution, BSP-regulatory-structured community engagement. It connected Filipino blockchain developers with Web3 opportunities extending beyond gaming into DeFi, creator economy, and remittance infrastructure. It surfaced BSP's VASP framework alongside blockchain remittance as the most commercially-significant Philippine blockchain convergence. And it reinforced PBW as the annual anchor for the Philippine blockchain community's broadest gathering.
Why Sponsors, Exhibitors and Partners Should Join
Strong fits include: BSP VASP-registered crypto platforms expanding in the Philippines' large retail market; blockchain remittance platforms for the Philippines' OFW economy; DeFi and Web3 gaming protocols recruiting Filipino developer talent; NFT creator economy platforms for Filipino digital content creators; and Philippine crypto education and community building organisations. To get involved, list your event with CoinGabbar.
Why KOLs, Media and Influencers Attend
The Philippines' annual blockchain week in Manila — where BSP's VASP framework provides regulatory structure and play-to-earn heritage provides blockchain literacy — offers the most community-authentic Southeast Asian blockchain adoption story. Coverage can spread through the press release network.
Why Builders and Participants Join
For Web3 founders and blockchain investors targeting the Philippine market, Philippine Blockchain Week 2023 offered Manila's most community-embedded annual blockchain gathering. You engaged with BSP's VASP licensing framework and the Filipino blockchain community's evolution beyond play-to-earn into DeFi, creator economy, and remittance infrastructure — one of the world's most commercially-motivated blockchain remittance markets given the Philippines' OFW economy. Many left with Filipino developer community connections and market insights grounded in one of Southeast Asia's most blockchain-literate populations.
Tickets and PR Offers With CoinGabbar
Building Web3 or blockchain products for the Philippine market or its OFW remittance economy? CoinGabbar offers ticket discounts and free or discounted press release publishing for projects booked through us. To sponsor or add your event to our digital asset events list, email event@coingabbar.io.
How the Event Concluded and What Came Next
Philippine Blockchain Week 2023 concluded with Manila's blockchain community carrying post-play-to-earn Web3 evolution and BSP VASP regulatory clarity forward. BSP continued its VASP licensing activities. PBW continued as an annual anchor for the Philippine blockchain ecosystem. To follow what came next, see CoinGabbar's Web3 tech events page and our crypto hackathons list.
Glossary of Key Terms
- BSP: the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas, establishing the VASP licensing framework under Circular 1108 for Philippine crypto exchanges.
- VASP: Virtual Asset Service Provider, the BSP licensing category for Philippine crypto exchanges and related services.
- OFW: Overseas Filipino Workers, millions of Filipinos working abroad who send significant remittance volumes home — creating large-scale blockchain remittance demand.
- Play-to-earn: a gaming model where players earn crypto rewards through gameplay, pioneered at scale by Axie Infinity in the Philippines.
- Remittance: money transfers from overseas workers to their home country families — a Philippine economic pillar where blockchain applications aim to reduce fees and settlement time.
Disclaimer
This page is for general information only. It is not financial, legal, or tax advice. This conference took place in September 2023; Philippine crypto regulations may have evolved. Please confirm current details and do your own research. Crypto assets are volatile and can lose value.
