Last month on 1 April, the Quadrans Foundation, established in 2018 and based in Mendrisio, Switzerland, announced the official public launch of its blockchain platform. The Quadrans Foundation revealed that this new platform will be made available to Southeast Asia and the rest of the world.
Then, in just less than a month after the launch, Quadrans’ blockchain platform managed to garner as many as 168 active nodes. (Real-time activities can be viewed at this webpage http://status.quadrans.io/).
Nodes are the very essence of a blockchain. A node can be any active electronic device, including a computer, phone or even a printer, as long as it is connected to the internet and as such has an Internet Protocol (IP) address. The role of a node is to support the network by maintaining a copy of a blockchain and, in some cases, to process transactions.
“The worldwide distribution of the nodes safeguards the principle of inclusiveness and transparency, essential for the reliability of the network. Anyone can be part of the network and contribute to increasing digital trust of information. We aim to reach the same number of nodes as the most popular blockchains and become one of the most decentralised public blockchains over the next year,” Quadrans Foundation president Marco Vitale told The ASEAN Post.
The Quadrans Foundation brings together influential academicians and business people who have combined their expertise to conduct research and development, promotion, education and blockchain technology support activities. A team of experts will continue to grow and contribute actively to the development of the Quadrans Foundation, bringing value, knowledge and experience, as they have already done in the case of the University of Trento, which, along with multinational firms such as the Information & Communication Technology Italtel, have installed nodes and actively joined the Quadrans blockchain.
Already active in the ASEAN region is Azizi Meor Ngah, advisor to the Malaysian government with a deep knowledge of the food world and Nuraslina Zainal Abidin, Managing Director of the Malaysian firm Genaxis Group.
Their decision to contribute to the mission of the Foundation is functional to Quadrans platform and is focused on topics such as the implementation of Halal standards and the sensitive environmental aspects of sustainability.
Among the personalities and experts of Quadrans Foundation active on various fronts are:
➢ Albert Tan, university professor at MIT Boston with a deep knowledge of supply chain issues
➢ Andrea Cruciani, co-founder and CEO of Agricolus
➢ Licia Garotti, Marco Galli, Valentina Lattanzi and Emanuela Campari Bernacchi of the law firm Gattai, Minoli, Agostinelli & Partners
➢ Roberto Sabatini general manager of Caricom Africa and Caricom Ethiopia Manufacturing
➢ Daniele Tumietto, expert in national, European and international standards and member of technical groups on Blockchain and DLT at UNECE - United Nations Economic Commission for Europe
➢ Emil Abirascid journalist and founder of Startupbusiness
➢ Gian Luca Comandini co-founder of Assobit and publisher of Cointelegraph and one of the blockchain experts at the MiSE table
➢ Laura Cappello, lawyer and blockchain expert and president of Blockchain Core and scientific director of the Blockchain management school of Ateneo Impresa
Quadrans’ blockchain platform will be especially helpful to ASEAN countries as it will promote fair international trade, governmental cooperation, as well as the economic cross-border integration of these countries, establishing an efficient and secure digital communication between businesses, government agencies and individuals. This will impact ASEAN economies directly.
“Quadrans supports the ever-increasing demands for transparency, sustainability and certified quality of products and practices along supply chains like for palm oil export, Halal standards, clothing industry, etc., and it will contribute to build a safe and reliable environment in which consumers are empowered with a tool for verifying the unique features of the product, influencing their everyday choices,” Vitale said, adding that Quadrans’ blockchain platform will be useful to all sectors. He also gave several examples to support his claim.
“Quadrans will create business opportunities for entrepreneurs by providing open access to blockchain technology and provide a suitable digital infrastructure for the development of the Internet of Things (IoT).
“The public administration will be able to use Quadrans for digital identification purposes to eliminate problems such as illegal labour, identity thefts and tax evasion. Governments can digitalise ownership and record the transfers of land titles and properties, and eliminate any possibility of vote rigging.
“NGOs can increase the effectiveness of charity organisations operating in the Southeast Asian region that fall under corrupted activities. Meanwhile, academic institutions such as universities and colleges can issue certification to students reducing degree frauds and maintaining reputations. The healthcare system can make medical records securely available to the patients.”
These are but a few examples of how blockchain will benefit the region. In reality, anyone can contribute to the verification mechanism of the Quadrans network and, as Vitale says, “be part of a virtuous circle that generates reward”.
Related articles: