Blockchain This Week: Emerging Economies Wake Up To Blockchain Potential & More

Emerging economies across the world are waking up to the utility of blockchain technology for various purposes. A clutch of Singaporean government agencies is launching the Singapore Blockchain Innovation Programme (SBIP), a research program for blockchain technology with $8.9 Mn in funding. 

The participating agencies in SBIP are Enterprise Singapore, Infocomm Media Development Authority and the National Research Foundation Singapore. The programme has also received support from the Monetary Authority of Singapore, the country’s central bank and financial regulator. 

In a statement, Peter Ong, the chairman of Enterprise Singapore, said “Covid-19 has emphasised the need for trusted and reliable business systems in the new digital world. Blockchain technology helps embed trust in applications spanning logistics and supply chains, trade financing to digital identities and credentials.”

SBIP will engage around 75 companies over the next three years to explore blockchain technology-enabled solutions across sectors. It is working with Dimuto, a global supply chain platform, to use blockchain technology to trace perishables with the goal of improving farmers’ creditworthiness. 

Meanwhile, the UnionBank of the Philippines, in partnership with Standard Chartered Bank, has successfully completed a proof of concept for the issuance of a retail bond on a digital platform leveraging blockchain technology for bond tokenisation.

The 3 and 5.25-year dual-tranche issuance totalling PHP 9 Bn by UnionBank was successfully mirrored on the platform co-created by UnionBank and SC Ventures, the innovation and ventures arm of Standard Chartered. 

Orders received were tokenised and tokens issued mirrored the traditional transaction but were not allocated directly to investors. 

The participants in the venture feel that the solution would provide retail investors with a trusted and transparent platform to gain direct access to bonds. 

Recently, global fintech player PayPal started accepting cryptocurrency on its platform, while investment bank JP Morgan Chase has adopted blockchain-based interbank payment systems through Stablecoins. 

Closer home, the ongoing India Mobile Congress would feature sessions by domain experts on emerging technologies such as 5G, artificial intelligence (AI), Internet of Things (IoT), data analytics, cloud and edge computing, blockchain, cyber-security, smart cities and automation.

Other News 

Bitcoin, Blockchain: Most Americans Don’t Know the Difference

Blockchain and crypto awareness in the United States is highest among the young, per a new survey. But few people know the difference between the two terms, and many think Bitcoin (BTC) and blockchain are one and the same thing, despite the fact that BTC and altcoins are now grabbing headlines in the mainstream media. You can read the full cryptonews.com story here. 

Atari CEO On Crypto Token And Blockchain Gaming

Atari, the classic game developer known for Tetris, Pong, and Pac-Man, has been relatively quiet for years, after it was bought by French company Infogrames in 2008, then filed for bankruptcy protection in 2013.

Now the brand is plotting a comeback that includes a new console, multiple cryptocurrencies, and blockchain gaming. You can read the full Yahoo Finance story here.

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