Russian Sberbank And FAS Launch Blockchain-based Digital Ecosystem

Sberbank and the Russian Federal Antimonopoly Service (FAS) have launched a pilot project of Digital Ecosystem for document transactions based on Blockchain technology.

Sberbank and the Federal Antimonopoly Service have implemented a model of electronic interaction, that allows transferring and storing encrypted documents, as well as using electronic signatures. According to the official press release, the project aims to explore the possibilities for the distributed storage of documents, which can improve the speed, reliability and quality of interaction between companies and institutions.

Stepan Kuznetsov, managing director of the distributed services department at Sberbank, said that the innovation behind the project of Digital Ecosystem is that no telecom operators or third parties are used within the document flow. It uses only the networks of participants, which makes this solution simpler and reduces expenses.

Andrey Tsarikovsky, Deputy Head of the Federal Antimonopoly Service in Russia, said:

"The decentralized solution reduces costs, as it doesn’t require data centers and reduces requirements for equipment backup. It is important that Russia becomes one of the first countries in the world where the government in collaboration with the market participants is considering these innovations to simplify doing business." 

In the pilot project of Digital Ecosystem, several major Russian companies that have already implemented innovative solutions in their businesses, also participated:  Russian Coal, ForteInvest and the largest Russian airline company Aeroflot.

Meanwhile, in September it was reported that Sberbank has joined international Blockchain consortium Hyperledger, while the University Of Innopolis has launched the first accelerator to support Blockchain and FinTech start-ups in the Republic of Tatarstan.