European Commission wants more standards for blockchain
The European Commission (EC) has been paying close attention to blockchain and what it could mean for businesses, governments, and individuals in the EU. As blockchain’s use and impact grows in both public and private spheres, the EC is focusing its efforts on interoperability and other standards for the technology.
In 2017 the European Commission’s Small and Medium Enterprise (SME) Group began supporting startups using blockchain to develop digital identity and payment services, including for the EU-wide free Wi-Fi access project, WiFi4EU.
On February 1, 2018, the European Commission (EC) launched the EU Blockchain Observatory and Forum, an action plan designed to encourage member state governments, industry and citizens to explore new opportunities that blockchains and distributed ledger technology can offer.
Created as a pilot project of the European Parliament, this initiative embraces applications well beyond cryptocurrencies and, importantly, recognizes that blockchain technologies are increasingly used to digitize assets other than money.
The EC is now focusing on the development of open technical standards that will allow blockchains to be interoperable across borders and to consolidate expertise in diverse sectors of the European economy. These might include real estate registries, digital notaries, supply chains, and social services. Another EU goal is interconnection of national databases and investor access to the digitized information they contain.
European officials are also drafting news laws around standards for blockchain and licensing of crowdfunding platforms in part to attract and encourage fintech investment post-Brexit.
The EC has selected Consensys as a global commercial partner to support the Observatory’s outreach and entrepreneurial approach in Europe. The EC aims to provide more visibility to diverse blockchain actors, improve business processes and enable new business models.
Andrus Ansip, VP for the EC’s Digital Single Market (DSM), noted that blockchain “can help reduce costs while increasing trust, traceability and security.” He envisions European startups forming “a leading world region” in the rollout of blockchain.
Commissioner of the Digital Economy and Bulgarian politician Mariya Gabriel says that she sees blockchain as a game changer and wants to establish an enabling environment for it.
While it remains to be seen how the EU and its various governments will explore and invest in the technology, it appears that the EC is, at the very least, interested in connecting with the private sector and exploring blockchain’s vast potential in the public sector. To this end, EC policy officer Benoit Abeloos will deliver a keynote address at TechNova’s Blockchain Summit in London later this week, discussing the policies and initiatives that seek to support blockchain as well as exploring interoperability matters, such as digital identity, across Europe.
For more information on the Blockchain Summit, visit their website. To learn more about the Global Legal Blockchain Consortium, visit http://legalconsortium.org/
