Terminal 3, a Hong Kong-based Web3 startup, announced today that it has successfully raised an oversubscribed pre-seed round to build user data infrastructure for a decentralized future. The company’s investor group includes 500 Global, CMCC Global, Consensys Mesh, Bixin Ventures, BlackPine, DWeb3, Hard Yaka, Bored Room Ventures, and Mozaik Capital, among others.
Terminal 3’s mission is to replace centralized data storage that deprives users of privacy and saddles enterprises with compliance and security issues and their associated costs. To this end, the startup leverages decentralized storage and zero-knowledge proofs to empower an equitable Web3, where user data is freely composable while remaining fully private and secure.
The company’s co-founders are Gary Liu (CEO), Malcolm Ong (CPO), and Joey Liu (COO). All three are former entrepreneurs and business leaders who have built, scaled, and transformed some of the world’s leading technology companies. Previously, they worked together at the South China Morning Post, where Gary was the Post’s CEO, while Malcolm and Joey were SVP of Product and Head of Strategy respectively. Malcolm was also the Co-founder and CTO of Skillshare, the world’s largest online learning community for creativity, while Gary and Joey co-founded Artifact Labs, a Web3 startup backed by Blue Pool Capital and Animoca Brands that is preserving historical assets on the blockchain. Gary is also the Founding Chair of Web3 Harbour, an association in Hong Kong serving Web3 builders, investors, users, and leaders.
The increasing number of data privacy regulations, such as Europe’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and China’s Personal Information Protection Law (PIPL), has created a stringent environment for the storage and use of personal information worldwide. US and UK corporations have spent over US$9 billion on GDPR compliance since 2018, with those investing incurring average costs of US$1 million annually.
At the same time, data security is also a costly enterprise concern as data breaches accelerate in frequency. Global spending on data security and risk management products is projected to exceed US$188 billion in 2023. As such, blockchain technology is increasingly viewed by corporate executives as a solution for user data privacy and security, as evidenced by a recent survey of US Fortune 500 companies that found 51% of enterprises that use or plan to use blockchain employ the technology for ‘Data Collection and Management’.
Terminal 3 is a compelling alternative to the non-compliant and unsecured data infrastructure that enterprises rely on today. Its founders are perfectly suited to address data privacy problems that plague the internet, with their mix of consumer startup success and expertise in enterprise technology helping to bridge a critical gap between the old world of centralized data and the new world of decentralized identity.
Scaling Web3 will require the re-invention of core enterprise technologies, and Terminal 3 is building solutions that serve both corporations and individuals, to enable this critical shift in our digital world. For more information, please visit Terminal 3’s Official Website, Twitter, and LinkedIn.
Contact:
Joey Liu
Terminal 3
[email protected]
