There is nothing more frustrating with a new technology and not having anybody to turn to for help, either to learn from or to assist in implementing the technology for business purposes. Blockchain still mystifies most except tech enthusiasts and when most people think of blockchain, the first thought that comes to mind is “cryptocurrency”. But the technology is more than just about cryptocurrencies, although it is the underlying technology that they are built upon.
Well, Malaysians need not fear that they have no one to turn to as OMC Group Sdn Bhd (OMC Group) aims to educate and help them discover the potential of blockchain technology through the Asia Blockchain Centre (ABC), a hub set up to serve as an accelerator, incubator and coworking space for blockchain learning and innovation in the company’s stand-alone office building in Petaling Jaya.
The ABC will act as a catalyst to accelerate research and development in the technology that will benefit businesses from various industries and is in line with Strategy 2 of Malaysia’s Budget 2020, in which the government announced it is encouraging the building and rollout of digital applications such as blockchain. This, of course, leverages on the government’s National Fiberisation & Connectivity Plan to provide comprehensive coverage of high-speed and quality digital connectivity nationwide including rural areas over the next five years.
Under this strategy, OMC Group, through ABC, hopes to develop blockchain technology in line with the overall national policy, which aims to make the country a primary destination for investment in technology together with cutting-edge solutions in the Southeast Asia region. The government, on its part, has also announced under Budget 2020 an allocation of RM25 million as a contestable matching grant fund to spur startups to build digital applications.
While OMC Group’s focus for its blockchain technology is business-to-business application, and how adopting this technology can help in business transformation plans, businesses will also benefit from it as they can provide better service to their customers. OMC Group is hoping to deploy its blockchain solutions to help them improve on issues that top their concerns – efficiency, security, transparency, traceability and costs – and it can help them through partnering under the ABC umbrella.
Changes such as these can really help to build brand confidence. Blockchain solutions can be deployed to simplify business processes to make them more efficient, to track products and make transactions and payments more transparent. OMC Group’s value proposition for the enterprise or busines-to-business market is its own patented consensus algorithm – Authorised Proof of Capacity (APoC) – which can be used to validate, audit, store and secure data in its consortium blockchain, known as OMChain – while the smart contract feature is being rolled out under OMChain 2.0. APoC has the added benefit of high-speed processing without the higher energy costs often identified with Proof-of-Work that the bitcoin protocol uses. In addition, there is the privacy afforded by being part of a consortium blockchain, where only authorised participants/miners are allowed access and own the decentralised ledger.
What OMC Group offers through ABC is application development, legal compliance, training and consultation for those keen to participate in its consortium blockchain. Blockchain expertise is scarce in this region, ABC can provide the knowledge and expertise, collaborate with tertiary institutes of education and organise gatherings among developers for talent development that can meet market needs. ABC will also organise a number of outreach programmes for businesses to help them in understanding and adopting blockchain technology.
OMC Group’s vision for the ABC is for it to become a hub of excellence in providing blockchain services not just in Malaysia but across Asia. The ABC will collaborate with like-minded centres/hubs in other countries to build a “Blockchain Hub Alliance” that will work with enterprises to innovate and develop blockchain services.
By OMC Group
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