Italien Banking Association offers to trial digital euro
Banking and medicine are just two possible sectors that could benefit from blockchain technology integration, however, they are not the only ones
In Italy, a collection of over 700 banks known as the ABI, Italian Banking Association, are calling for the European Central bank to consider trialling a digital Euro in the country. Having shared their thoughts about the concept in an announcement last week, the ABI followed up their statement by offering up the banks of their association as a testing ground.
Some Italian banks have already been trialling distributed ledger technology, however, the banks of the ABI are keen to take things a step further. Improvements in the efficiency of banking processes are cited as the major return the implementation of a digital Euro could provide.
The ABI has now joined other European institutions such as the French and Dutch central banks to call on the European Central Bank to begin the trialling and implementation of a digital Euro. It should be noted however that the Italian Central bank has yet to make a comment on the matter.
At the eastern end of the Mediterranean, an impressive step towards blockchain integration in medicine has been made. The Mediterranean Hospital of Cyprus can now conduct Covid-19 tests on patients and have their results immutably stored on the VeChain blockchain.
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This allows citizens to prove their health status in order to return to work or travel abroad.
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— VeChainInsider (@vechaininsider) June 20, 2020
These results have also been linked with an application known as E-Hcert. This provides an accessible way for users to view their test data. Due to the secure and immutable nature of blockchain data storage, users will then be able to use their E-Hcert app as proof of their test results. This will enable them to return to work or travel abroad in line with regulations in Cyprus or other countries.
Not only in Europe, but also across the world, the Coronavirus pandemic is necessitating substantial changes to combat the virus. Blockchain technology offers a multitude of possible applications to almost every sector in business or services, however, until now there has not been the same pressure to change and adapt.
In as much of a “silver lining” scenario as it is possible to get from the grave impact of the virus worldwide, further blockchain adoption should be celebrated. Whether it is from added pressure to the banking sector or the necessity for the handling of mass data as a part of medical testing, Blockchain is offering solutions to these problems. By adopting the technology now, Europe, and indeed the world, is paving the way for a brighter future.
