Singapore Government Agency Backs New Blockchain Accelerator

Enterprise Singapore, a government agency set up to develop the startup ecosystem, is supporting a new blockchain accelerator program called Tribe Accelerator.

Announced Tuesday by TRIVE Ventures, an early stage Southeast Asia-focused venture capital firm based in Singapore, the accelerator is being launched in partnership South Korea’s ICON Foundation, as a technical partner, and PwC Singapore’s Venture Hub.

Seeking to drive widespread adoption of blockchain technology across Asia, Tribe Accelerator aims to help startups achieve “real-world applicability and impact” beyond technical considerations like smart contracts and interoperability.

It further aims to provide a platform for traditional enterprises and government agencies to work alongside the upcoming blockchain projects.

“As the accelerator targets later stage startups past their Series A funding rounds, Tribe will offer significantly more value as it provides startups with access to its network of governmental and business mentors, technical support, technical talent and ultimately gain global exposure, which will help incubated startups translate their blockchain concepts into real products,” TRIVE partner Ng Yi Ming told CoinDesk.

The program is scheduled to officially launch in early 2019, the firm said, adding that, for the first batch of companies, it will not take equity or charge a participation fee.

“By working with Tribe Accelerator, we hope to create more innovative and disruptive blockchain startups to capture growth opportunities locally and overseas,” said Jonathan Lim, Enterprise Singapore’s director of startup and global innovation alliance, in an announcement.

Singapore image via Shutterstock