Nathan J. Marasigan
Partner, Innovation & Blockchain
Nathan J. Marasigan is a lawyer with a passion for technology and innovation. He authored “Opening the Archipelago: the Story of Blockchain in the Philippines”, which is the first book that focuses on live use cases and blockchain projects founded and/or flourished by Filipinos. The book is currently on its second print run and was labelled a bestseller by its publisher.
He is currently counsel for several projects in the fintech, blockchain, and web3 space, including: a major global exchange, international decentralized autonomous organizations (DAOs), and a web3 gaming company, among others.
Mr. Marasigan was formerly General Counsel of UBX, the corporate venture studio and fintech subsidiary of UnionBank of the Philippines; providing support for the company’s venture capital fund, its different ventures (payments, embedded banking, lending platform, open finance, tech), and pioneering initiatives (open finance, cryptocurrency staking pool) among others.
He was previously the lawyer for UnionBank’s Fintech Group, advising and preparing the documentation for its fintech and blockchain initiatives including the virtual currency ATM, token custody and escrow services, stablecoin, remittances through blockchain, and bond tokenization.
Prior to joining UnionBank, Mr. Marasigan was a legal consultant for several government bodies and NGOs. He was involved in proposing legislation and drafting appellate court decisions, as well as advising clients on matters relating to technology, administrative law, criminal law, energy law, and human rights law.
As an innovator, Mr. Marasigan was part of several startups with tech solutions in the fields of energy and education; exploring novel ideas such as real estate tokenization through blockchain, energy supply procurement through an online platform, and blockchain tech applications in online education. Before deep diving into the world of technology, Nathan was also a regulator in the energy industry.
He was the former Chief of Staff of the Chairman of the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC), pushing for the issuance of regulations implementing, for the first time, competitive selection processes in the procurement of energy, as well as retail competition and open access. He would later work as the ERC’s Head of Legal.
Mr. Marasigan started his career as a litigator at the Angara Abello Concepcion Regala & Cruz (ACCRA) Law Office, one of the top firms in the country. He obtained his Juris Doctor and Bachelor of Arts in Political Science degrees from the University of the Philippines in Diliman, where he also served as an Editor and, later, Chairman of the Philippine Law Journal Editorial Board.