The Malta Independent on Sunday
PKF Malta visit the famous crypto valley of Zug
PKF Malta executives recently visited the canton of Zug known for its budding start-ups in the virtual world of blockchain. The invitation was to visit one of the evening gatherings of enthusiasts, venture capitalists, technical people and professionals of the industry.
Such gatherings are typically held on a weekly basis at the premises of an innovation-churning nucleus called Crypto Valley Labs. The scene was complete with a networking floor and a Bitcoin ATM which gave us a feel of the ZUG ecosystem: a colourful, self-assured, intelligent and very polite outfit, poised to become the number one destination for blockchain applications.
George M. Mangion, Senior Partner of PKF Malta said: “During our visit we had the opportunity of meeting one of the founders and board members of a successful start-up, Mr Ralf Glabischnig. He shared his dream with us – his ambition to turn CV VC (Crypto Valley Venture Capital) into a global player. Later we were given a tour of the premises. This turned out to be a state-ofthe-art network of offices, hot desking systems, meeting rooms, and recreational spaces, all frequented by Zug’s freshest and most aspiring minds.”
CV Labs operates a blockchain start-up incubator program that gives each qualifying start up $125K in seed funding which is then followed through in a threemonth program in exchange for equity or tokens. Start-ups are thus exposed to ideas from vi- sionary entrepreneurs, advisors and mentors in the blockchain space.
Crypto Valley is today home to a thriving ecosystem with roughly 600 crypto start-ups and foundations including some of the brightest names in the space, including ConsenSys, Shapeshift, Dfinity, Aragon, Bancor, and many more.
Mr Glabischnig is also managing partner of a Swiss Information Management Firm whose clients include among them Swiss Life and Credit Suisse. The firm has also made a clear footprint in the blockchain finance space where they have partnered with a tech firm to develop decentralized applications (DApps) for insurance on the Ethereum blockchain.
This was not the first time PKF visited the centre of disruptive technologies. They visited Silicon Valley and MIT, its Chinese counterpart Shenzhen, Polish incubators and Venture Café’s in Rotterdam with repeat visits over the last five years. By comparison, the Swiss Crypto Valley of ZUG was one more stop in the quest for the perfect R&D breeding model that Malta could potentially emulate, doubling up to selfeducate and gain insights into the beckoning world of digital revolution.
In conclusion, Mr Mangion said: “In pitching Malta’s trajectory to match the advancements reached by ZUG, one takes pride in our own ambition for regulatory prowess and hopes to match and exceed what others have achieved. Malta is currently building the world’s most scientific home base for blockchain development.”