Dai Zhikang: The essence of Web3 is ownership and freedom, and Bitcoin is the "value anchor" of the digital age
“Web1 is browsing, Web2 is interaction but assets and profits are still trapped in centralized platforms, while Web3 is ownership and freedom.”Author: Ether Fish, BitKoala Finance
BitKoala reported on August 27 that BitKoala CEO Dai Shanshan had the honor of interviewing Dai Zhikang, Chairman of the Board of Hong Kong-listed company Boya Interactive. During the interview, Dai Zhikang stated that the Web3 industry is still in a very early stage and will develop towards compliance and practicality in the future, with digital currency being the passport to this ecosystem.
"I believe the essence of Web3 is decentralization, where individuals absolutely own their assets and can transfer their assets and data at any time."
01 The Essence of Web3: From Browsing and Interaction to Ownership
Dai Zhikang analyzed the fundamental differences between Web1 and Web3 from an evolutionary perspective: "Web1 is browsing, Web2 is interaction but assets and profits still reside on centralized platforms, while Web3 is about ownership and freedom."
He explained this concept with a vivid analogy: "In the Web2 world, many resources are in the hands of large platforms, and many things cannot be done without the platform. However, in the Web3 world, many algorithms are executed by smart contracts, and things can be accomplished without a centralized platform."
02 Industry Status: From Transaction-Centric to Infrastructure and Compliance-Centric
When discussing the current development status of the global Web3 industry, Dai Zhikang stated that Web3 is transitioning from "transaction-centric" to "infrastructure and compliance-centric."
He pointed out three key advancements: the spot Bitcoin ETF bridging traditional funds and the crypto market; stablecoins becoming useful and easy to integrate in real business; and the scaling application of on-chain US Treasury bonds and other RWAs forming a positive cycle.
"These three points connect the value anchor, payment settlement, and profit carriers of Web3, bringing the industry's focus closer to 'being usable'," emphasized Dai Zhikang.
03 Early Stage: More Web2 Practitioners Needed to Refine Quality Applications
Despite rapid development, Dai Zhikang believes that the Web3 industry is still in a very early stage, "and more Web2 practitioners need to enter the Web3 industry and focus on refining quality applications."
He also pointed out the challenges facing the industry: "How to attract more users and the constantly changing global regulatory environment are potential challenges for the future of the Web3 industry."
04 Future Direction: Compliance Development and Pragmatism
In the long term, Dai Zhikang believes that the Web3 industry will definitely develop towards compliance and practicality.
"Web3 represents decentralization, but it does not mean non-compliance. Any industry that wants to develop better must have rules and regulations." He predicts that as the concepts and applications within the Web3 ecosystem become more widespread, there will be a significant impact on current Web2 applications, "and it is very likely that existing Web2 applications will be reshaped."
05 Investment Criteria: Compliance, Market Potential, and Team Capability
Boya Interactive has invested in and incubated several Web3 projects, such as MTT ESports and RootData. Dai Zhikang shared the criteria the company uses when selecting projects for investment and incubation.
"We mainly consider factors such as compliance, market potential, track growth, economic model, and technological innovation." He particularly emphasized, "as well as the industry experience, technical capability, and project delivery capability of the relevant project teams."
06 Strategic Goals: Building a Pure and Leading Web3 Listed Company
Dai Zhikang detailed Boya Interactive's overall strategic planning in Web3: "We hope to build a pure and leading Web3 listed company, including but not limited to Web3 game development, Web3 infrastructure construction, and the creation of a Web3 gaming ecosystem."
The company also aims to make deeper and longer-term layouts in the Web3 field by purchasing digital assets and building a complete Web3 ecosystem, "laying a solid foundation for the strategic transformation into Web3, ensuring long-term sustainable development in the Web3 field, and maintaining a leading position in Asia within the Web3 domain."
07 Cryptocurrency Reserves: Confident in Bitcoin's Long-Term Value
Financial reports show that Boya Interactive will continue to expand its cryptocurrency reserves in 2024, mainly in Bitcoin (BTC) and others. Dai Zhikang explained the considerations behind the company's decision.
"I personally invested in Huobi in 2014, and over the past decade, I have conducted in-depth research and reflection on blockchain and Web3-related technologies. I am very optimistic about the development of the Web3 industry and the growth potential of the Web3 ecosystem," he said.
Dai Zhikang has a clear understanding of Bitcoin's value: "In the short term, Bitcoin has high volatility, but in the long term, it has the potential to resist inflation, providing appreciation opportunities for stored value, making it very valuable in the long run."
08 Market Impact: Significant Increase in Company Valuation
After holding cryptocurrencies, the valuation of Boya Interactive Group has significantly increased. "More and more investors are paying attention to Boya Interactive as a value opportunity, indicating that everyone is very optimistic about the strategic direction of combining Web3 and gaming."
Dai Zhikang stated: "The company hopes to increase market recognition of its valuation through strategic holdings of Bitcoin and innovative layouts in related Web3 businesses."
09 Market Outlook: Cryptocurrency Will Become the Mainstream Asset of the Future World
Regarding the development trend of the global cryptocurrency market, Dai Zhikang stated: "I firmly believe that cryptocurrency will become the mainstream asset of the future world, although we are still very far from this goal."
He analyzed: "Cryptographic assets, as a means of value storage, are supported by a strong public open-source architecture. In the short term, cryptographic assets have high volatility, but in the long term, they have the potential to resist inflation, providing appreciation opportunities for stored value, making them very valuable in the long run."
10 Reserve Strategy: Hold When Prices Rise, Buy More When They Fall
Dai Zhikang clarified Boya Interactive's cryptocurrency reserve strategy: "Boya Interactive currently has no plans to sell Bitcoin. Price volatility does not affect us; what we need to do is simple: hold when prices rise and continue to buy when prices fall."
He revealed: "Currently, Boya Interactive holds the most Bitcoin among Hong Kong-listed companies, but globally, we are still quite small. We hope to continue increasing our Bitcoin holdings to maintain a leading position in this field."
11 Bitcoin Value: Digital Gold and Value Anchor
Dai Zhikang has profound insights into Bitcoin's long-term value: "Currently, Bitcoin's asset attribute as 'digital gold' has formed a consensus internationally."
He mentioned legal progress: "In July 2025, the U.S. House of Representatives voted to pass the '2025 Digital Asset Market Clarity Act,' which preliminarily confirms Bitcoin's commodity attributes at the legal level."
Dai Zhikang analyzed from a technical perspective: "Bitcoin, as the value base layer of the cryptographic network, connects the ecosystem and applications of the blockchain network, serving as the value anchor of the digital age."
He also pointed out Bitcoin's scarcity value: "As a product of mathematics and energy, Bitcoin has a limit of 21 million coins, and as the cryptographic network expands, its scarcity will become increasingly evident."
12 The Role of Digital Currency: The Passport to the Web3 Ecosystem
In Dai Zhikang's view, digital currency plays a key role in the Web3 ecosystem: "Digital currency is the passport to the Web3 ecosystem, and chains, Gas, and other necessities for Web3 applications require the use of digital currency."
He introduced Boya Interactive's progress in promoting the integration of digital currency with Web3 games and other businesses: "Boya Interactive has been researching Web3 games and Web3 infrastructure, and we have achieved some results. We have mastered the important technologies required for Web3 games."
Dai Zhikang revealed: "The key incubated Web3 games are set to launch in Q4 2024, with a cumulative registered user base of 760,000, distributed across more than 20 countries and regions including Southeast Asia, Europe, and Latin America, with weekly active users reaching 80,000."
13 Advice for Practitioners: Compliance Knowledge and Continuous Learning Ability
For practitioners in the Web3 industry, Dai Zhikang offered advice: "The most important change in this cycle of the Web3 industry is compliance, so I believe that for all practitioners, the most important thing is compliance knowledge. All development must be promoted within a legal and compliant framework."
He emphasized that Web3 is a rapidly changing industry: "New technologies, new policies, and new models are constantly emerging. Practitioners must have a habit of continuous learning, tracking emerging trends such as zero-knowledge proofs and RWAs, while also maintaining an understanding of traditional finance and the internet."
Dai Zhikang also reminded: "The industry ultimately centers around user value. Those who can truly solve user problems and provide a smooth experience will gain advantages in the long run."
14 Investment Philosophy: Investing is Investing in People
As an angel investor who has achieved super returns, Dai Zhikang has invested in many successful companies, including Boya Interactive, Huobi Group, and MoMan Camera. He shared his investment philosophy: "I mainly look at people when investing. If the person is right, even if the project is not, they can still make a comeback. If the person is not right, even if the project is great, it may not succeed."
He used his investment in Boya Interactive as an example: "When I invested in Boya Interactive, Zhang Wei was still working on chat rooms. I felt that his persistence in such a trivial matter for eight years showed that he had strong resilience and would not be easily swayed by small benefits; it was just a matter of choosing the wrong direction."
Dai Zhikang recalled: "After I invested in him, I competed with him every day, eventually convincing him to switch tracks into the gaming field. Then, it became unstoppable, and within a few years, Boya Interactive was listed on the Hong Kong main board."
15 Advice for Entrepreneurs: Focus on Quality and Specialization
For today's entrepreneurs, especially young people trying to start businesses in Web3, Dai Zhikang offered advice: "I believe that doing anything follows the same principle: first, you must create quality products, and second, you must focus."
He reminded entrepreneurs not to be distracted by external factors: "The current era is changing too quickly, with many new things emerging every day. I hope entrepreneurs do not get too distracted; they must think clearly about why they want to start a business, what products they want to create, and what products users need, and sincerely refine a good product."
Dai Zhikang again used Zhang Wei as an example: "When I invested in Zhang Wei, it was because he was both focused and had a pursuit of excellence in quality. Such qualities will yield results in any field."
Looking to the future, Dai Zhikang hopes that Boya Interactive will actively explore and become a pioneer and leader in the integration of Web3 and gaming.
He envisions that Boya Interactive, which keenly captured the trend when mobile internet first emerged, is now similarly capturing the rise of the Web3 sector.
"We believe this sector will disrupt many current application business models, just like mobile internet did," Dai Zhikang confidently stated.
Through three strategic adjustments—actively holding reserves of Bitcoin, creating and issuing digital assets through the combination of gaming and Web3 technology, and actively investing in Web3-related infrastructure—Boya Interactive hopes to remain undefeated in the future era based on digital encryption technology.
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