KEY POINTS

  • Sons of Singapore's tycoons founded ARC
  • ARC is a blockchain-based private digital community 
  • Beta version of the app is available on Apple App Store

The craze around the Non-Fungible Token (NFT) space has drawn in a lot of executives and industry leaders many of whom want to take an active part in the industry. In Singapore, sons of some of the city-state's tycoons have jumped on the NFT bandwagon and have founded ARC.

ARC is a private digital community for businessmen and entrepreneurs launched on a platform based on blockchain technology. Kiat Lim, son of Singapore financier Peter Lim, along with Elroy Cheo, scion of the edible oil company Mewah International Inc., started ARC.

ARC is an app-based community that will later grow into a metaverse and feature some gaming elements. The founders said that this app will connect people from Taipei to South Korea and Australia, to collaborate on stories, as well as on other ventures.

Enthusiasts say the metaverse would eventually allow online experiences, like meeting a friend, to feel face-to-face thanks to virtual reality headsets
Enthusiasts say the metaverse would eventually allow online experiences, like meeting a friend, to feel face-to-face thanks to virtual reality headsets AFP / CARLOS COSTA

Those who do not wish to own ARC's NFT will be charged an annual subscription fee. The project's beta version uses NFTs to authenticate membership and is available on the Apple App Store. An Android version is currently being developed.

This is not Lim's first venture into the technology space. Last October, he and his father debuted ZujuGO. The scion is also the executive director of Thomson Medical Group and CEO of the healthcare provider's digital platform Thomson X.

Cleo, on the other hand, has spent the past decade tending to his family's business and reaching out to new markets. He has been involved in NFTs and cryptocurrencies for several years now.

Cleo is the architect of ARC, which is slated to introduce an ARC metaverse and decentralized finance (DeFi) elements.

"By creating a safe space for Asia’s dynamic and purpose-driven generation to connect authentically, ARC is a new collaborative destination that opens up endless possibilities,” ARC cofounder Elroy Cheo said in a statement.

"We want to create a community that Asia has never seen before,” Cheo told Bloomberg. “We see the world change a lot, especially after Covid. People in this target segment now all want a sense of belonging."

"We are a networking ecosystem that encompasses online and offline experiences, and pushing online boundaries," Lim noted.

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