22 European nations join the European Blockchain Partnership

A group of 22 European nations, including the UK, France, Germany, Norway, Spain and the Netherlands, signed a declaration on April 11 establishing the new group, according to a release from the European Commission. The new partnership follows a study conducted by the EU in November 2017 that assessed potential of an EU-wide blockchain infrastructure.

The collaboration aims to avoid “fragmented approaches” to the technology by sharing technical and regulatory expertise among member states, as well as creating ways to promote blockchain applications across the EU-wide Digital Single Market. Moreover, the partnership also aims to facilitate the interoperability and implementation of blockchain services.

The news comes after the EU launched the Blockchain Observatory and Forum in February 2018, according to CoinDesk. Also, starting with the middle of 2018, the European Commission announced it would host a Fintech Lab to foster emerging technologies including blockchain.