The Pacific island nation, with a population of 18,000, is a leader in the implantation of blockchain technology.
Palau has contracted Japanese financial software company Soramitsu to create a platform to issue and manage government bonds. The project is expected to begin trials this fiscal year with a live rollout possible next year. This is the latest of several blockchain projects the country has invested in.
The Nikkei reported that the contract was finalized in June and is worth “several hundred million yen,” with 100 million yen equivalent to around $630,000. That is less than half the cost of such a system using traditional technology, the newspaper added. The project will receive aid from Japan’s Economy, Trade and Industry Ministry, as well as strategic and management advice from the foreign and finance ministries.
Palau uses the US dollar as its currency and currently does not have a bond platform. Most of the country’s approximately 18,000 citizens, who are spread across 340 Pacific islands, use the services of US banks, according to The Nikkei, so the new platform will allow the government to tap into citizens’ savings.
