The ever-evolving development of web3 is considered the future of the digital world, and we can also see its influence in the economic sector. In CNBC’s Economic Outlook Program 2022, VCGamers co-founder and chairman, Wafa Taftazani, stated that the presence of web3 will have a tremendous impact on the digital economy in Indonesia in 2022. This, he said, was because there were still many people who didn’t have bank accounts or credit cards.
“The impact is extraordinary (the presence of web3). Because in Indonesia there are still many people and parties that do not have access to bank accounts and credit cards, so not many have credit scoring,” said Wafa, who emphasized that this setback would certainly make it difficult to access a loan and investment funding. “In the end, if you can’t get a loan or investment funding, you can’t grow and develop economically, and this is happening massively in Indonesia,”
He continued that the presence of web3 will also facilitate the process of obtaining investment or funding to develop business activities. Moreover, recently there has been a massive growth in the number of people who have crypto wallets instead of stock accounts.
“With web3, it will cut all these processes. The fact is that now in Indonesia, many people have more crypto wallets compared to stock accounts,” he said. “Without realizing it, we are now seeing a generation that has embraced fintech through web3 without being noticed by the traditional financial system. This means that people can very easily get access to funding and do business,” continued Wafa.
Broadly speaking, he stated there is a lot of work that web2 cannot do that is now made possible by web3. “And also a lot of things done in the metaverse make a lot of things in the real world irrelevant, and this needs to be managed properly. Cooperation between the government, the private sector, and the community is crucial to allow web3 to advance the nation’s economic.”
What is web3?
Web3 refers to a decentralized online ecosystem using the data-storing system blockchain. A blockchain is a distributed database that stores information in a digital format. It maintains a secure and decentralized record of transactions in the cryptocurrency system. Platforms and apps built on web3 blockchain will not be owned by a central gatekeeper, but are owned by users who use and maintain those services. This breakthrough is aimed to destroy information monopolies and change how networks and corporations work on a global scale. New economies, new products, new services online, new democracy of the web — the dawn of a new Internet era. However, web3 also comes with its share of speculations, namely from the issue of information theft and user privacy. And just like any other breakthroughs, we’ll see how this will work out in the future.
Evolution from web1 → web2 → web3
Web1 is the early form of the Internet and a global network, setting the foundation for digital communication and information-sharing. We can see this in web pages with content written and aimed at an audience, basically the source of information people can access, in a centralized system. We move to web2, where users are allowed to make content of their own to support participation and interactivity within the global community. We see this in various social media platforms emerging in the past decade, where we can create our own content and share it with others, no longer having to rely on a central source. While web1 is more like a read-only platform, web2 is all about contribution. Coined as the ‘social web’, web2 involves a lot of tools and platforms where users can share everything about their lives, be it in posts, pictures, videos, podcasts, comments, and others. But despite all that, our content is still ‘owned’ by the companies behind those social media platforms like Facebook, Youtube, Twitter, etc. Web3 seeks to revolutionize this by allowing users to own their content through tokens, NFTs, etc. Holders will have value and ownership through these digital assets, which they can use for trade, investment, and others. Decentralized technologies like blockchain, NFTs, and metaverse will create a transparent, secure, and open Internet. All information and exchanges are conducted without intermediaries like banks or other tech companies.
How does web3 affect the digital economy?
Though some will try to fool people with this, web3, NFTs, and crypto assets cannot make someone rich instantly.
“What needs to be understood is that WEB 3, NFT, Crypto Asset, Metaverse and others are not the way to get rich instantly,” said Wafa Taftazani in the program. “But this is a way to make us active participants in an already very digital and global economy by using new technologies (blockchain, crypto assets),” he said, quoted from the CNBC Indonesia YouTube channel.
“We are working with Raffi Ahmad and RANS Entertainment for the web3 project at VCGamers to develop the RANSVERSE metaverse, where we will bring all types of work in the physical-verse there (architects, traders or SMEs),” said Wafa.
He hopes that the public can see the presence of Web3 as a useful investment opportunity in the future. However, people also need to be careful by paying attention to several things, such as the timeframe, fundamentals, and economic values of these assets.
“Therefore, web3 is linked to real economics and can provide tangible benefits. It is hoped that the public will always see Web3 as an investment opportunity,” he concluded.
References
Edelman, G. (2021, November 29). The Father of Web3 Wants You to Trust Less. Wired. https://www.wired.com/story/web3-gavin-wood-interview/
O’Neill, S. (2022, January 7). What’s The Difference Between Web 1.0, Web 2.0, And Web 3.0?. LXA. https://www.martechalliance.com/stories/whats-the-difference-between-web-1.0-web-2.0-and-web-3.0
Stackpole, T. (2022, May 10). What Is Web3?. Harvard Business Review. https://hbr.org/2022/05/what-is-web3?utm_campaign=hbr&utm_medium=social&utm_source=facebook&fbclid=IwAR2PJung0I1ecgpz64bPvVidVaxhgTEgFavPeyEOOUH92VN_ONq8onRMDfg
