Marshall Islands gives update on its Sovereign cryptocurrency

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Announced last year, the Marshall Islands’ plan to introduce a digital currency as the nation’s legal tender is showing signs of progress. The Sovereign (SOV) met a little resistance among lawmakers late last year when lawmakers threatened to try and oust the country’s president, Hilda Heine. She survived a no-confidence vote and is pushing forward with her goal of seeing the SOV legitimized and the SOV Team has published an update on the cryptocurrency’s status.

The SOV could come to life as early as this year. Introducing the digital currency combines “technological innovation and national and international law, economics, and politics” and the team points out that “significant progress” has been made despite the complexities of developing the currency.

Assisting in the creation of the SOV are several notable experts from across a number of fields. The former Secretary General of the Bank for International Settlements, Dr. Peter Dittus, is serving as the SOV’s Chief Economist. The technical aspects of the currency are being overseen by a graduate of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), and winner of the 2018 EOS Global Hackathon, Paul Wehner. Another MIT alum, Jim Wagner, has been tapped as the VP of Engineering and a former partner of a $500-million real estate asset management firm, Uri Ben-Ezer, has been brought in as the Chief Financial Officer.

Also onboard is Steve Tender, the man who helped Malta become a “Blockchain Island.” The SOV Team says in its announcement, “Steve’s legal and regulatory work in Malta has been a huge success, and the SOV’s status as legal tender means the opportunities for the Marshall Islands are even greater.”

The white paper and the tech paper for the SOV have been drafted, pending their final release. The group is making the papers available, until their public release, on a per-request basis and anyone wishing to review the documents can contact the team at [email protected].

The group adds, “The global economic and monetary system is taking the world to the brink of social and environmental destruction, with runaway systems exacerbating climate change, rising sea levels, and atrocious inequality … SOV will be the world’s first cryptocurrency as legal tender, and will bring long-term prosperity to the Marshall Islands and the world in a responsible, sustainable, and environmentally friendly manner.”