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This article is part of our Consensus HK 2026 Coverage
In the crypto industry, success is often measured by hype: how loud is your community? How high is your token price?
But for Tianwei Liu (LinkedIn, X), the co-founder and CEO of StraitsX, success is when you wonât even know youâre using his product.
âI always say this in interviews: Iâm in the payments field for 10 years, and my mom still doesnât know what I do,â I thought Tianwei was joking in an exclusive interview with BitPinas at Consensus Hong Kong. But it was true.
âTo her, she just wants to get her coffee⌠the technology really scares them.â
This philosophy of hiding the complex âmumbo jumboâ of blockchain behind a seamless user experience has made StraitsX the backbone of digital assets in Southeast Asia. According to a recent PwC report, Singapore dollar-pegged stablecoins now dominate the region, with StraitsXâs XSGD capturing over 70% of the market share.
Now, as a Visa Principal Member and a licensed Major Payment Institution in Singapore, Tianwei is ready to take this âinvisibleâ infrastructure to the rest of Asia, unlocking financial inclusion for millions of underserved Filipinos in the process.
The Strategy: A âStablecoin Sandwichâ
The core of StraitsXâs success is what the industry calls the âstablecoin sandwichâ: a front-end that looks like a normal e-wallet, a back-end that looks like a normal bank settlement, and a middle layer powered entirely by blockchain speed and efficiency.
A prime example is their partnership with Grab and Alipay+. Travelers to Singapore can pay at hawker centers using their home e-wallets. They scan a QR code, the merchant gets paid in SGD, and the user pays in their local currency.
âThis is just an e-wallet Alipay+ payment flow to the merchant⌠there are no changes in user experience. But behind the scene, every transaction is settled on-chain, real-time with XSGD.â
Tianwei Liu, CEO, StraitsX
Smashing the âFinancial Inclusionâ Wall
For years, the promise of âfinancial inclusionâ in Southeast Asia has hit a mathematical wall: it is simply too expensive for traditional banks to serve customers with small balances. If a user only has $100 to deposit, the cost of KYC, card issuance, and account maintenance often exceeds the profit.
Tianwei believes stablecoins have finally smashed that wall.
âNow with digitalization and stablecoin, theyâll be happy to serve you even though you only have 10 to 100 dollars.â
Tianwei Liu, CEO, StraitsX
By leveraging blockchain rails to slash the cost of funds from 0.5-0.6% to a fraction of a cent, StraitsX is powering a new wave of âstablecoin neobanksâ, which includes platforms like Redotpay, UPay, and Pionex. These platforms can issue Visa cards to people who were previously unbankable. This allows them to hold stablecoins (USDC, USDT, or StraitsXâs XUSD) and spend them instantly at 150 million merchants worldwide.
âThat fundamentally changes this whole equation. Iâm starting to see what weâve been promised in fintech for the last 10 years about financial inclusion.â
Tianwei Liu, CEO, StraitsX
Remittance: Beyond the 3-Day Wait
The Philippines is one of the worldâs largest remittance markets, yet sending money from financial hubs like Singapore can still take up to three days. This writer shared with Tianwei the frustration of a relative who lost days waiting for funds to clear over weekends or holidays.
The executive said StraitsX is actively working with partners like Coins.ph and PDAX to change this.
âWe are really starting to see remittance companies⌠allowing merchants to send funds directly into Philippine Peso powered by stablecoins.â
Tianwei Liu, CEO, StraitsX
By using XSGD or XUSD as the underlying rail, transfers can settle 24/7/365. While currently in the early stages, daily transactions are already flowing, which proves that the demand for instant, low-cost cross-border settlement is real.
The Future is Wearable
During the interview, Tianwei showed off a glimpse of the future that goes beyond plastic cards: a stablecoin-powered NFC ring.
Now, granted, NFC rings are not new. This writer â who saw one during the previous YGG Web3 Games Summit in Manila, and one worn by a friend â was unconvinced of its usecase. That, until TianWei explained what could possibly be a most important feature for someone who lost lots of wallets when he was younger:
âThis is a NFC ring, it doesnât need to be charged⌠I can just tap with my knuckles and it will just pay,â he demonstrated.
As digital banks embrace younger, tech-savvy customers, physical wallets are becoming obsolete. Whether itâs tapping a phone via Apple Pay or a smart ring, the form factor is changing, but the rails underneath are increasingly becoming blockchain-based.
For the Philippines, where mobile penetration is high but credit card penetration is low, this leapfrog technology offers a way for millions to access the global digital economy without ever stepping foot in a bank branch.
âThe medium is also changing,â Tianwei observed. âI donât carry a wallet anymore.â
This article is published on BitPinas: The âStablecoin Sandwichâ: How StraitsX is Unlocking Financial Inclusion in the Philippines and Beyond
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