The Pacific island of Palau is upping its tech game. It's now offering digital residency IDs on the Solana blockchain. This move is a big deal. It's the first time a country has put legal IDs on Solana.
RNS.ID, a decentralized identity protocol, is behind this project. They announced it on Twitter yesterday. The company is pretty chuffed about it.
Palau kicked off its digital residency program in 2022. It gives people worldwide a chance at residency. The kicker? You don't have to live there.
Last September, Palau minted its first decentralized ID on Ethereum. Vitalik Buterin, Ethereum's co-founder, was there to see it happen.
Want a Palau digital residence card? It'll set you back $248. RNS.ID's platform handles the applications. These residencies come with perks. You can extend your visa up to 180 days. Plus, you get anonymity on some crypto exchanges.
George Harrap, co-founder of Step Finance, is optimistic. "It's exciting to see Palau using Solana now for their IDs," he told Decrypt. He reckons this new initiative will gain traction.
Palau isn't just handing these IDs out willy-nilly. They've got a vetting process. It includes anti-money laundering and identity checks. It takes up to 10 days. Since last September, RNS.ID claims they've issued 7,338 digital residencies.
Decentralized identity systems are a hot topic in blockchain. They're seen as a game-changer. Even Microstrategy, known for its Bitcoin hoarding, is getting in on the action. They're developing their own system based on Ordinals-like inscriptions.
Shiba Inu developers are also working on digital identity systems. And let's not forget Worldcoin. They've got OpenAI CEO Sam Altman on board.
Worldcoin's latest move? They're teaming up with Community Gaming. The plan is to use World ID to verify e-sports players' identities. How? By scanning their irises with a device called the Orb. It's all a bit sci-fi, if you ask me.