Yesterday 22 european countries signed a Declaration on the establishment of a European Blockchain Partnership. The Partnership will be a vehicle for cooperation amongst Member States to exchange experience and expertise in technical and regulatory fields and prepare for the launch of EU-wide blockchain applications across the Digital Single Market for the benefit of the public and private sectors. This step can help Europe continues to play a leading role in the development and roll-out of blockchain technologies.
Blockchain is technology for promoting user trust. It makes it possible to share on-line information, agree on and record transactions in a verifiable, secure and permanent way. The technology is being successfully tested, mostly in financial services, and will be integrated into a lot of digital services, such as regulatory reporting, energy and logistics in the coming years.
Mariya Gabriel, Commissioner for Digital Economy and Society, welcomed the signature of the declaration.
«The Partnership launched today enables Member States to work together with the European Commission to turn the enormous potential of blockchain technology into better services for citizens», – she said.
Close cooperation between Member States can help avoiding fragmented approaches and can ensure interoperability and wider deployment of blockchain-based services. The Partnership will contribute to the creation of an enabling environment, in full compliance with EU laws and with clear governance models that will help services using blockchain flourish across Europe.
The countries signatories of the Declaration are: Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Ireland, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, UK.
Other countries, Members of the EU and of the European Economic Area are invited to join the European Blockchain Partnership.
