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“You can make a strong argument...that new technology actually offers new and innovative ways to protect consumers,” said Mulvaney. “You are moving light years beyond the complaint hotline to where you can really see things happening in real time.” (Wall Street Journal, Yuka Hayashi, 07/18/18)
Saudi’s Riyadh Municipality partners with IBM to streamline government services on the blockchain
Riyadh Municipality, Saudi Arabia, is partnering with IBM to develop a strategy to streamline government services and transactions on а blockchain, in accordance with the Saudi Vision 2030 program. After the Riyadh Municipality, IBM, and Saudi tech firm Elm Company will conduct workshops to identify services that can be upgraded using blockchain, IBM will develop the first blockchain solution at the municipal level and Elm will implement the technology into services provided by the government.
“Through the collaboration between Riyadh Municipality, Elm and IBM, we will be able to help the Saudi government reimagine and transform the way in which services are provided to citizens, residents, businesses, and visitors,” said Tarek Zarg El Aioun, Country General Manager at IBM Saudi Arabia. “It is a strategic step towards supporting the objectives of Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030,” which proposes to integrate leading technologies into municipal services.
In May, the Saudi Arabian government conducted a “blockchain bootcamp” session, which focused on building Ethereum smart contracts and decentralized applications (DApps) to create a “digital environment” under its 2020 “action plan and objectives.”
In February, Saudi’s central bank, the Saudi Arabian Monetary Authority, partnered with the payment firm Ripple in a pilot program in which Saudi’s national-licensed commercial banks used Ripple’s enterprise software solution xCurrent for cross-border payments.
“The Kingdom’s adoption of blockchain technology provides a significant development in this space as it supports their goals of becoming a digitized nation,” wrote IBM’s Takreem El Toham. “This transformative technology naturally integrates with the Kingdom’s Vision 2030 journey as it is set to bolster its transformative endeavors and redefine the delivery of services to its citizens, businesses and to the rest of the world.” (Cointelegraph, Ana Alexandre, 07/11/18; Forbes, Takreem El Toham, 01/12/18)
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