Denmark joins EU blockchain alliance, will use it for ship registry

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The Danish Minister says the move will make Denmark the first country in the world to use blockchain technology for ship registry.

Danish news website FinansWatch has reported that Danish Minister for Industry, Business and Financial Affairs, Brian Mikkelsen, has signed a declaration pledging to a partnership on blockchain development with 22 other European countries.

Logistics management is one of the blockchain’s most promising applications. And according to Mikkelsen, Denmark intends to use the technology to manage ship registry—and will make them the first country in the world to do so.

“Denmark is already exploring the potential of blockchain technology. As the first country in the world, we will use blockchain technology for registering ships in the Danish registries,” Mikkelsen said in a press release.

“Blockchain runs across national borders and a common European cooperation is crucial for future-proof standards and solutions. I am therefore very pleased that we have now signed the declaration,” he added.

Since last year, Denmark has been making some efforts in integrating the tech into some aspects of their operations. In December, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs launched a study exploring blockchains for development cooperation and humanitarian aid, titled “Hack the Future of Development Aid.”

In March, the European Commission posted a press release announcing an “Action Plan” involving blockchain technology for innovating financial services in the region. The Action Plan, according to the European Commission, would help the EU compete as a global hub for fintech using blockchain technology as well as other emerging technologies.

“Europe should become a global hub for FinTech, with EU businesses and investors able to make most of the advantages offered by the Single Market in this fast-moving sector. As a first major deliverable, the Commission is also putting forward new rules that will help crowdfunding platforms to grow across the EU’s single market,” they wrote. “Today’s Action Plan envisages to enable the financial sector to make use of the rapid advances in new technologies, such as blockchain, artificial intelligence and cloud services.”

The initiative includes the establishment of an EU Fintech Laboratory, and tapping on the EU Blockchain Observatory and Forum for assessing challenges and opportunities, as well as strategies for using blockchain technology in all sectors of the economy, according to the release.