City of Dubai partners with Avanza Solutions for blockchain payments system

The City of Dubai has announced an official partnership with Avanza Solutions through a MoU with Smart Dubai Office to implement a citywide blockchain based payments platform.

Avanza’s Blockchain Platform Cipher was selected by the Smart Dubai Office to deliver a pilot under the Dubai Future Accelerators (DFA) program on February 14th, 2017.

Dubai Future Accelerators is a unique program for entrepreneurs, in partnership with the government of Dubai, to use the city as a live test ground for creating solutions to global challenges of the future.

Through Cipher, Avanza has successfully delivered an immutable, agile and instant reconciliation and settlement platform to Smart Dubai Office for the DubaiPay payment platform.

The pilot project was delivered in collaboration with Dubai Smart Government and Emirates NBD – the largest retail banking franchise in Dubai and the market leader across core business funcstions.

Smart Dubai Office plans to roll out Cipher across all its existing 38 partner government entities, partner financial institutions and Departments to set up the first blockchain based building block within its financial ecosystem.

The MOU signed by Dr. Aisha Butti bin Bishr, Director General, Smart Dubai and Waqas Mirza, Managing Director & Chief Marketing Officer Avanza Solutions is in line with His Highness Sheikh Hamdan Bin Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum’s vision to transform Dubai into the 1st Government in the world to execute all applicable transactions on the blockchain by 2020.

Speaking at the Signing Ceremony Dr. Aisha – Director General, Smart Dubai said:

“I am confident with Avanza’s expertise in payment solutions combined with their Cipher blockchain platform, they will support the Smart Dubai Office with technology that not only bridges current gaps but also becomes a vital piece in Smart Dubai’s roadmap for payment processes in the near future.”

Waqas Mirza, Managing Director & Chief Marketing Officer, Avanza Solutions said:

“Taking on innovation led challenges is Avanza’s DNA. So much so, that we go out of our way to seek challenges that compel us to push boundaries of our imagination and competence. This passion instills into everything we do and this is why we are extremely happy and proud to be a part of this extraordinary program and take part in Dubai’s transformation to become the region’s technology and innovation hub”.