Blockchain registry to raise Dubai’s profile

The Dubai Department of Economic Development (DED) and the Dubai Silicon Oasis Authority (DSOA) yesterday announced a joint blockchain project to improve the ease of doing business in Dubai and facilitate foreign direct investment.

Developed in collaboration with Smart Dubai and IBM, the joint initiative is called the Dubai Blockchain Business Registry Project.

According to the a statement released by the DED, the project is aligned with the Dubai Blockchain Strategy, launched in 2016 by Shaikh Hamdan Bin Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai and Chairman of the Executive Council of Dubai, which seeks to establish Dubai as the first city to be fully powered by blockchain by 2020.

The initiative seeks to empower the Unified Commercial Registry (UCR) project, the first blockchain-enabled trade licence repository launched by DED, to store and update company registration information issued by DED as well as the free zone authorities in Dubai.

First to implement

The Dubai Silicon Oasis Authority, which is the regulatory body for Dubai Silicon Oasis (DSO), the integrated free zone technology park, will be the first free zone to implement the pilot project.

Aspiring to create an efficient, seamless, and impactful experience, the collaborative effort will streamline the process of setting up and operating a business, roll out digital exchange of trade licences and related documentation for all business activities, and ensure regulatory compliance across Dubai’s business ecosystem.