Christopher Louis Tsu is a distinguished entrepreneur and the CEO of the Venom Foundation. With an impressive career spanning over 37 years, he has launched multiple start-ups and played a pivotal role in developing and distributing a diverse array of products worldwide. His expertise encompasses biotechnology, digital technology, artificial intelligence, and blockchain.

Fluent in both English and French, Tsu's educational background is equally remarkable. He holds a Bachelor's degree in Electronic Engineering from the University of Limerick, focusing on solid-state electronics. Additionally, he earned a Chartered Business Diploma from the University of West London and possesses further qualifications from the Chartered Institute of Marketing. Tsu’s multifaceted skills and global perspective continue to shape innovative solutions in today's rapidly evolving technological landscape.

How does Venom's Layer 0 and Layer 1 architecture address blockchain scalability and usability challenges?

Blockchains were invented about maybe 11 or 12 years ago. The first generation was Bitcoin, which introduced the concept of blockchain. The second generation was Ethereum, which added smart contracts. The third generation was Solana, which focused on making transactions faster and cheaper. The fourth generation includes blockchains like Near and Polygon, which have introduced interoperability features.

Blockchain technology has a lot of potential uses, but it’s only valuable if people can actually use it. One major issue with many blockchains is that as more people use them and transactions increase, transaction costs also go up.

This is where Venom is unique. Venom combines two types of technology: Layer 0 and Layer 1. Because we are both Layer 0 and Layer 1, we have an additional protocol that allows us to break into different cellular structures. As a result, when we scale, we utilize something called dynamic sharding. Without getting too technical, this means we can support up to 100 million users.

Why are developing nations more likely to adopt blockchain technology, and how is Venom helping to drive this adoption?

So, now we have blockchain technology that can be applied at a national scale. I’ve started engaging with countries directly, rather than just trying to attract projects to build on top of the technology. Recently, I’ve been visiting countries like Uganda and Kenya, and you'll see articles written about it. I’ve also been working with various countries in the Middle East—sovereign nations that are in the process of developing.

These countries are looking to leapfrog what's happening in Europe and Western societies, as they are more likely to adopt this technology. Countries like the Philippines have a lot to gain from this kind of innovation. In contrast, the U.S. is unlikely to adopt it anytime soon, as it already has highly efficient banking systems, a strong currency, robust rule of law, and significant vested interests. They may consider it later, but they're not particularly interested at the moment.

In contrast, countries like the Philippines, Uganda, and Vietnam are eager to adopt blockchain because of its potential to advance their development. We’re very fortunate to have an agreement here with your government to facilitate e-bills and government checks on the blockchain.

Was it the Philippine government who approached you or you offered your services to them?

We were going around, knocking on doors, so people knew we were reaching out. They contacted us and asked, "Can you do this?" The Philippines is actually very advanced in technology compared to other countries. It has a young, very tech-savvy population.

When we started talking to government officials, they were very receptive. They already knew about Ethereum and other blockchain technologies, so when they saw what we had, it was a smooth introduction.

Prior to that, we did have some business dealings with private entities, but we only launched a few months ago, so we’re still a brand-new blockchain.

Other than National Printing Office, what other government agencies do you currently work with?

We also want to work with financial institutions because our technology can mirror the way traditional finance operates. Other blockchains have both gas fees and transaction fees, which makes things complicated. With our technology, there are no gas fees — only transaction fees. This allows us to replicate exactly what financial institutions do.

Additionally, we can incorporate smart contracts, which act as programmable money. For example, if there's a flood disaster, you can identify the affected areas, so when funds are sent out, they go directly to the farmers impacted by the flood. This way, you can add “smart” thinking to the money itself, enabling it to make decisions.

Another example involves certain investment products. Typically, if the price drops, assets are liquidated—in crypto, this often means the position is closed. However, with our smart contract technology, instead of automatic liquidation, the system can trigger an alert, asking, "Do you want to add more capital because the price has reached liquidation level?" If the answer is yes, additional capital can be added, preventing liquidation and allowing the asset to continue trading.

All of this can happen without the need to make a phone call to the client — just one example of how smart contracts can be embedded into complex financial products.

Have you been talking to any financial institutions or central banks that would build their CBDCs on your blockchain?

I believe we have had a few inquiries from a few countries about CBDCs. The technology is fine, but I'm afraid that governments take such a long time to make a decision, and I can't just wait around. So, we're more interested in doing a stablecoin, because people could do stablecoins very, very fast.

What are the benefits for the Philippines?

The benefits for the Philippines are significant. For example, once checks and paperwork are moved onto the blockchain, it removes a huge amount of cost. Currently, someone in the Philippines has to manually write and approve each check. If this process is on the blockchain, a smart contract can manage it, saving considerable costs and speeding things up.

With blockchain, people can receive funds much faster, and money can be sent directly to a phone. This also creates positive ripple effects. Our policy is to provide the software to the country so they can build on it. After the first project, the Philippines will gain expertise in blockchain development. They’ll start creating wallets and other products, which will spread rapidly.

Since the Philippines will be a first mover in this space—something no other country has done—they’ll be positioned as a leader in the region. Neighboring countries will look to the Philippines for expertise and developers.

Will there be competition? Yes, but if the Philippines moves quickly and attracts the right developers, they can build strong development communities around blockchain. There is currently a big shortage of engineers with these skills, and they are highly paid, often working in places like California where costs are high.

Since you mentioned about infrastructure, are you also willing to help the Philippine government when it comes to training future engineers?

Yeah, we have training programs. It's in our interest that you learn. And you do it yourself.

Why is your company set up as a foundation rather than an infrastructure entity?

I'm the CEO of a non-profit organization. Blockchain foundations are typically organized this way: there’s a non-profit organization at the core, and then there are subsidiary companies that generate revenue by building various applications. My role is to spread the technology, not to make money from it.

How will the foundation be able to support its operation?

Through the sale of the token. So we have a Venum token, which is publicly listed as of a few months ago. And we hope that every time we do a deal, the token price will go up.

Would you be getting a bit of a cut from the transaction fees as well?

This is the business model. As a foundation, we provide the blueprint and the architecture. The relationship between the Philippines and the actual builder isn’t with the Venom Foundation directly. It could be with Venom Technology Limited, for example. That company would engage in a revenue-sharing model.

Let's say that today, processing a single check costs about 10%. By moving to blockchain, the cost could drop to 1%, resulting in a 9% savings. Typically, we would propose charging a 2% fee. So, the cost goes from 10% down to 2%, and we take a share of that 2% fee as revenue, which we then split with the partnering entity.

What are the short-term plans for the Philippines regarding that deal?

Short-term plan is that now we have to build a prototype and do tests. So I know that we're testing right now, doing penetration security testing. And then I guess we're going to give out some cards and there's going to be maybe a pilot of a few thousand people. And then once it's working at 5,000, it goes 10,000, it goes out, scale it out.

So you'll be hosting any hackathons, any exams, or education initiatives anytime soon as well?

Yes, we will. And hopefully we'll be coming back more often.