VeChain Foundation Signs a MoU With Cyprus for Strategic Collaboration on Blockchain Projects

On Friday (26 October 2018), Singapore-based VeChain Foundation, a pioneer of real-world applications using public blockchain technology, CREAM, a U.S.-based blockchain-focused strategic advisory and investment firm, and Invest Cyprus, the Republic of Cyprus’s “dedicated partner responsible for attracting and facilitating Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in key economic sectors”, announced via a press release that they had signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU)  for strategic collaboration.

The purpose of this MoU is “to establish a framework for the basis of cooperation in the field of blockchain technologies and related use cases. This collaboration signifies the change in the direction to a prosperous Cyprus in the next digital age.”

The VeChain Foundation, which was established in Singapore in 2015, “aims to connect blockchain technology to the real world by providing a comprehensive governance structure, a robust economic model, and IoT integration.” The foundation’s blockchain solutions use the VeChainThor platform. The foundation says that it has demonstrated the power and flexibility of VeChain technology in the following enterprise use cases:

• Cold-chain logistics: “VeChain’s cold-chain logistics solution uses proprietary IoT devices to track key metrics throughout the entire journey. VeChain embeds data management and sharing in every process, making cold-chain logistics transparent, regulated, secure and reliable.”
• Automobile industry: “VeChain creates a digital passport of a vehicle recording all data including repair history, insurance, registration and even driver behaviour throughout its lifecycle. VeChain puts data into the hands of owners, making data management comprehensive, accessible and transparent.”
• Medical and healthcare industry: “VeChain’s blockchain solution can track end-to-end medical devices production process. Besides, with the patient’s authorization, VeChain can help patients to securely share their biometrics data with their doctors to enable real-time monitoring. VeChain makes the production and use of medical devices safer, better regulated, efficient and reliable.”
• Luxury and fashion industry: “VeChain embeds smartchips within luxury goods, brands can monitor the sales channels in real time to prevent illegal overstock trading. Meanwhile, consumers can verify the authenticity of the luxury products. VeChain puts control back into the hands of brands, making luxury trail transparent, seamless and data-driven.”
• Liquor manufacturing: “VeChain created a tracking & authentication platform for wine bottles, data of the wine at every step of the production process was stored on the blockchain. It also allows logistic providers and distributors to store relevant data before it reaches its destination. This platform brings immense value and trust, and most importantly stems out illicit activities. Consumer rights are protected simply by scanning a QR Code or NFC Chip which provides authentic and valuable information to the entire timeline starting from the source, storage, and logistics process at the fingertips.”
• Agriculture: “VeChain provides the solution of blockchain-enabled cloud services for the certification of environmentally friendly and organic agriculture products. Throughout the production process, IoT sensors and mobile devices feedback climate and soil conditions which are then updated into the cloud for real-time monitoring, this data is encrypted and immutable and at the same time, can be easily accessed by relevant parties with proper authorization and private keys. Data collection can help agriculture companies make better decisions. They can improve on the planting method, improve the quantity and quality of the crops and increase their product margins. In addition, it can minimize the negative impact of fertilizer and pesticides to the environment.”
• Logistics: “Leveraging on blockchain technology, various parties in the logistics cycles can access information on a transparent and immutable yet very secure platform with a private key. In addition, logistics service providers can now manage goods at the granularity of single units for the very first time. The VeChain platform can provide customers with better services, accurate logistics information of each single product and this means there is potential for new logistics and business models to develop.”

According to the press release, VeChain Foundation and CREAM will set up “a joint entity in Cyprus assisting in the development and implementation of blockchain solutions;” they will be offering “suggestions to Invest Cyprus including policy reform that enables blockchain as an underlying infrastructure for operations and financial services.”

The three parties say that they will work together to “accomplish several national level investment strategies involving the advancement of blockchain technology and blockchain powered economies,” and that this cooperation demonstrates “the real-life utilization of blockchain technology in financial services, investments and economic reform moving into many other aspects of society, in the context of the Government policy developing a new era of blockchain technology in Cyprus.”

Furthermore, they believe that their collaboration “represents the single largest venture into blockchain technology and intends to suggest reforms that are transparent, fair, and in compliance with AML and KYC, EU laws, regulations and best practices, which will also create value and economic development on Cyprus.”

Michalis P. Michael, the Chairman of Invest Cyprus, said:

“The plans unfolding in Cyprus should open the world to what is achievable by investing in new technologies. Invest Cyprus as a promoter of Cyprus Investment opportunities and advisor to the Government of Cyprus in the investments space, sees this technology as both transformational and fiscally restorative at the infrastructure level. We are investing in the development of the fintech, blockchain sector and we plan to be at the forefront so that we can facilitate investments and economic development in Cyprus and the region.”

As for Sunny Lu, the Co-Founder, and CEO of VeChain Foundation, he said:

“Just as the blockchain technology represents something much bigger than business and money, this partnership represents the true competency for global change embedding trust, transparency, and fairness to the core of our society. Along with our partners, we are excited to showcase the true value of blockchain as supplemental technology and as an infrastructure to the world.”

Featured Image Courtesy of the VeChain Foundation