Back from TOKEN2049 in Singapore? Here’s how to extend your marketing returns

By Maya Tan, Content Director 

You fought for the budget and you’ve conquered TOKEN2049 in Singapore. You and your team braved the haze, and the Singapore Grand Prix road closures, and you were ruthless about how you spent every hour. 

Now that you’re back, you’re wondering if you have a clear view of where the ROI came from. The robot at your booth drew people in, but how many of them are leads you can convert? Your team hit their business-card exchange KPIs, but how many of those exchanges became meaningful connections? Can you show how conversations you had translated into qualified leads, sales opportunities or pipeline growth to defend next year’s events budget? And how do you keep this investment paying off? 

Why visibility alone is no longer enough at TOKEN2049 

Bloomberg’s verdict on TOKEN2049 was that the big Singapore crypto party now has ‘more suits and less sizzle’. This bothers you but walking through the halls, you felt the same. The mood felt closer to a trad-fi summit than the edgy crypto trade show from a few years ago, which makes sense as the buyers at TOKEN2049 now include banks and licensed institutions. Where visibility was the goal a few years ago, the audience has moved past mere introductions. They want to know what long-term value you bring. Conservative institutions want partners who stay focused, having watched crypto firms change direction every market cycle. Being seen at the event is only the start of earning trust, but like you, many companies recognized this change. 

Also read: Why showing up isn’t enough: making events matter in 2026

Why TOKEN2049 side events were the ‘main’ event for valuable connections 

More than a thousand side events ran across the city during the week of TOKEN2049. Conference sessions are built for listening with less opportunity for meaningful conversations.  Like you, companies wanted more. So, the champagne flowed and attendees went from breakfasts to roundtables to networking cocktails and dinners. The side event became the place where you got to speak to companies you were targeting, or to expand your network and glean industry information that would not have surfaced at a conference panel. And with every booth claiming to be using AI, this was where you got the chance to explain how your solution is different. 

Further reading:  Small but mighty: Why micro events are driving better industry engagement

How to maximize your post-event marketing ROI 

You’ve made inroads but there is plenty you can still do to extend the return from your investment.  

Apply event intelligence to sharpening marketing strategy 

• Ask everyone who staffed the booth or hosted a side event to log the questions and objections they heard that week. That intelligence will sharpen your messaging long after TOKEN2049. 
• Follow up on the conversation. Sort contacts by what you discussed, then send each warm prospect a short briefing on the issue they raised. It will stand out in an inbox full of ‘great to meet you, let’s catch up’ emails. 
• Track it. Tag your TOKEN2049 contacts in your CRM and monitor qualified leads, opportunities created and pipeline influenced. Six months from now, you’ll have more than a stack of business cards to show for your investment. You’ll have evidence of the ROI to support next year’s budget. 

Extend the value of your TOKEN2049 side event

• Send guests a findings note from your roundtable, then invite them back online a few weeks later so the discussion keeps growing. 
• Take the format on tour. A roundtable that worked in Singapore can be rerun in your other priority markets, turning one evening’s conversation into a series. 
• Work the series into website blogs and LinkedIn posts, invite your community to keep the conversation going 

Build thought leadership between industry events

• Take note of the biggest questions and concerns your prospects had and address them with the sharpest argument you have, placing it in the business and trade press of your priority markets. This way, your name is already familiar when the next event begins, and you would have strengthened your media network. 

Read more: Branding on stage: Why events are driving the next era of thought leadership

Turn TOKEN2049 connections into long-term opportunities 

With Singapore FinTech Festival coming up on the 18-20 of November, 2026, the conversations you started are the ones you’ll want to finish there. Events pay off when the work carries on after the booth comes down.  

Our Financial Services team helps firms sharpen their messaging and turn a week in Singapore into thought leadership that keeps working between events. That makes your marketing ROI and next year’s budget much easier to defend. 

Key takeaways

Measure what matters after the event

Track qualified leads, sales opportunities and pipeline influenced by TOKEN2049 to demonstrate marketing ROI and justify future event investment.

Turn event conversations into actionable intelligence

Use the questions, challenges and objections raised by prospects to sharpen your messaging and personalise follow-up.

Extend the value of side events

Keep conversations going through post-event content, follow-up roundtables and similar events in priority markets.

Build visibility between major industry events

Turn insights gathered at TOKEN2049 into thought leadership and media opportunities that strengthen relationships with prospective buyers.

About the author

Maya Tan is a Content Director based in our Singapore office, working on longform content projects globally.