February 21, 2018 8:41 PM
Omise will work with the Thai government on a project to help online service providers verify users’ identities.
The tech startup Omise, parent company of the Ethereum-based blockchain firm OmiseGo, has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Electronic Transactions Development Agency (ETDA), a branch of Thailand’s Ministry of Digital Economy and Society, to lend support to a forthcoming “National Digital ID Platform.”
The system is intended to give online service providers “standardized ways to identify and authenticate their subscribers or customers using existing digital identifications; and then allow them to access a variety of services remotely.” According to a Thai-language version of the ETDA press release, the platform will identify both individuals and corporations and will be available for use by public and private entities.
The already-existing digital IDs in question could include online accounts with government agencies, online bank accounts, and “e-Wallet accounts.”
The platform will rely on an open-source “Federation Proxy,” a “bridge” of sorts that connects components in the “ID ecosystem together with an interoperable authentication protocol.” Within this system, Omise is expected to offer “authenticating services.”
The ETDA, which will manage the federation proxy, is also the governmental agency charged with its development.
The other public and private partners currently involved in the first phase of the project are Thailand’s Revenue Department, it’s Student Loan Fund, the Thailand Securities Depository Company Limited, the Thai Bankers’ Association, the Association of Thai Securities Companies, the Thai Life Assurance Association, the Thai General Insurance Association, and the National Credit Bureau. The ETDA expects more partners to join the project in the future.
ETDA executive director Surangkana Wayuparb said that the project “is truly a development of the country into digital economy and society.”
Following the signing, an Omise account tweeted that the company “has signed an agreement on the development of national ID using blockchain and ETDA of Thai government agency! [We] will continue to work on many projects that utilize blockchain in the future!”
Shortly thereafter, Omise CEO and founder Jun Hasegawa said that he was “really impressed that Thai Gov is kinda most aggressive one that try to applying best tech for improve entire country economics / peoples lives. I really see real issue here in Thailand around unbanked peoples, i believe Decentralization solve serious issue.”
Translations by Google.
Adam Reese is a Los Angeles-based writer interested in technology, domestic and international politics, social issues, infrastructure and the arts. Adam is a full-time staff writer for ETHNews and holds value in Ether and BTC.
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