Back in Crypto, Straight into Consensus Hong Kong 2026

After being away from the crypto space for over a year, I found myself suddenly back in it — and not gradually, but straight into Consensus Hong Kong 2026.

No warm-up. No catching up. Just straight into the chaos.

Looking back, I’m glad I went. But at the same time, I think it’s worth writing this down before the memories slowly disappear somewhere in the back of my mind — where all unfinished thoughts usually go.

The First Side Event — Katana

The first side event I attended was the Katana event near Central Station.

I walked in, scanned my Luma QR code, and… that was it.

No welcome. No instructions. No idea what was going on.

No one telling you:

who was speaking
where the talks were
where anything was

And most importantly…

where the free coffee and cookies were. (Yes, that was one of my main motivations.)

There were people networking everywhere, but for someone who came alone without any connections, it felt… awkward.

I didn’t know:

who to approach
how to join conversations
or even where to stand without looking lost

So I did what any rational person would do.

I left.

Second Attempt — Tokenized Capital Summit

The next event was the Tokenized Capital Summit, about 20–30 minutes away.

I told myself:

“This time, I’ll try harder.”

But… not much changed.

Maybe because the event was nearing its end, there weren’t many people left. The remaining panels weren’t particularly interesting either.

I did manage to sit through one talk from Kenny at Manta Network, where he discussed on-chain DEXs and what they were trying to build.

That part was interesting.

But overall, the experience was similar.

I collected:

a notebook
a classic-looking pencil

And not much else.

Why I Couldn't Network

Looking back, I think there were two main reasons why I couldn’t really network at these events:

I’m naturally introverted (a capital INTJ, for those who care about that kind of thing)
I probably expected someone to guide me

Which, in hindsight, is unrealistic.

No one is there to guide you.

Everyone is trying to survive their own conversations.

Day 2 — Picking Up the Badge

The next day, I went to the Hong Kong Exhibition Centre to pick up my pass.

That was all I could do.

Because apparently, “ordinary pass holders” were not allowed in until the next day.

The whole pass system could definitely be improved, but at the same time, I wasn’t expecting too much either.

So I:

waited in a long line
picked up my badge
went to a café

And worked while waiting for my wife.

Later, we walked around Wan Chai and Central, which she referred to as the “CBD,” like Singapore.

It did look similar.

Kite AI Event — Finally Talking to People

At 7 PM, I attended a side event hosted by Kite AI and PayPal Ventures, located on the 43rd floor of a building overlooking Central Hong Kong.

The view was great.

The free alcohol was also great.

And for the first time — I actually started talking to people.

I didn’t manage to connect with my “target” group (blockchain BDs), but I did have some great conversations.

Most people I spoke with were:

in marketing
or market makers

Which was interesting — because there were a lot of market makers at Consensus overall.

I met one person from Shenzhen who works as a BD for a large market-making firm in East Asia. We still keep in touch.

So I guess it wasn’t a complete failure.

Observations (You See This Everywhere)

There’s something you notice at almost every event:

A lot of people are sitting down with a drink… untouched… staring at their phones.

But interestingly, when you are actually talking and networking, you don’t feel tired at all.

You just keep going.

Standing, talking, moving — without even realizing it.

A Very Honest Observation

And then there’s something I’m sure many people notice, but don’t say out loud:

There are a lot of BDs who are female… and very attractive.

And a lot of white guys trying very hard to talk to them.

No offense to anyone — but some of them really need to work on their approach.

Late Night — Korean Networking

After the event (around 10:30 PM), I met up with colleagues and friends at a local Chinese restaurant.

It was mostly Koreans from various Web3 companies.

And honestly — this was one of the most comfortable parts of the day.

We had:

Chinese food
Tsingtao beer
and conversations about our past experiences

A lot of people had worked at the same company before, so that became an easy topic.

There was also… one person.

The kind who:

always has something negative to say
thinks they know everything
and somehow manages to ruin the mood

I happened to be sitting right next to her.

That was a long night.

Day 3 — The Main Conference

Wednesday was the official start of the Consensus main conference.

I arrived at around 10 AM with one goal:

Find free iced Americano.

There wasn’t any.

So I had to go next door to the Solana Accelerate hall.

And surprisingly…

They had banana vanilla iced latte, made by the Solflare team.

Probably the best coffee at the entire event.

Coffee in one hand. Cigarette in the other.

(For Koreans, these two go together. Don’t ask why.)

I walked into the main hall.

First Impression — Smaller Than Expected

It was big.

But not that big.

Compared to Token2049 Singapore at Marina Bay Sands, it felt smaller.

There was:

one main hall
around 4–5 stages
maybe 40–50 booths

I expected more.

Especially from blockchain foundations.

But surprisingly, there were less than 5 major foundation booths that stood out:

Cardano
Polkadot
Tron
Ault

There may have been more, but if I don’t remember them… they probably didn’t stand out.

Panels vs Reality

There were panels happening throughout the day.

But to be honest…

I don’t remember much.

I was more focused on:

which projects were there
who I could talk to

The Tron Lounge

One place I kept going back to was the Tron networking lounge.

It had:

water
sofas
tables

Perfect for resting.

Or so I thought.

Every time I sat down to rest…

Someone would come up and start a conversation.

Which is great.

But sometimes, I just wanted to sit.

A Conversation I Still Remember

One of the most memorable conversations I had was with a man from mainland China working at an asset management firm trying to enter Web3.

What surprised me was how well he understood:

global political dynamics
the Korean War
Chinese government narratives

He had a very balanced and informed perspective.

Which, honestly, I didn’t expect.

More importantly, he gave me advice that stuck with me:

Don’t think of networking as success or failure. Just think of it as experience.

That changed how I approached the rest of the event.

Less pressure. More conversations.

Goodies… Don’t Hit the Same Anymore

In past conferences, I used to go around collecting:

hoodies
shirts
random merchandise

(Still proud of that Solana hoodie from KBW 2023.)

But this time…

It didn’t feel the same.

Maybe I’ve changed.

Or maybe the goodies just weren’t that good.

Either way, I wasn’t chasing them anymore.

Although, I did end up getting:

a Cardano t-shirt
a Polkadot t-shirt
one from a side event

So not bad.

End of Day — Alcohol Helps

Around 5 PM, they started serving:

beer
wine
champagne

And suddenly…

Networking became much easier.

But by then, most booths were closing.

People were already moving to side events.

So I did the same.

Private Dinner — Canton, Spartan, Figment

I attended a private dinner hosted by Canton, Spartan, and Figment at a Japanese izakaya.

Good food. Good drinks. Good atmosphere.

The goal was simple:

Find Canton. Talk to Canton.

We did not find Canton.

Not my boss. Not me. Not anyone.

We still talked to:

people from Spartan
people from Figment
various other attendees

And interestingly…

Even when talking to potential “competitors,” it didn’t feel competitive.

It just felt like:

two employees talking about work

You could get a sense of:

where companies are heading
how they think
what they’re focusing on

Without anyone saying too much directly.

Final Thoughts

The reason I wanted to write this was simple:

I didn’t want these memories to disappear.

But also…

I wanted to capture what it actually feels like to attend these events — especially when you’re:

coming back after time away
going alone
and figuring things out as you go

It wasn’t perfect.

It wasn’t always productive.

It was sometimes awkward.

Sometimes boring.

Sometimes surprisingly insightful.

But overall…

I’m glad I went.

And if anything, it made one thing clear:

There are a lot of people out there trying to do the same thing.

Trying to talk. Trying to connect. Trying to figure things out.

Some just hide it better than others.