CZ visits Palau to kick off BNB Chain-supported ID NFTs for digital residency program
The tiny country introduced its digital residency program at the beginning of the year in the hope that it will help to retain the youthful population and attract business and industry.
The Republic of Palau announced Friday that it will issue identification cards to its digital residents in the form of nonfungible tokens (NFTs) on Binance’s BNB Chain blockchain.
Binance founder and CEO Changpeng Zhao (CZ) was on hand in the Pacific Island nation for the unveiling of the NFTs and to meet with Palauan President Surangel S. Whipps, Jr.
The exchange appears to have occurred by way of a crypto escrow platform called NFT Trader where records reveal the ape departing Cheese’s wallet and eventually landing in the “Fred_Simian” account that presently contains it.
Palau introduced its Root Name System (RNS) Digital Residency program in January.
California-based Cryptic Labs took part in the development of the program, which provides global citizens with identity cards issued by the government of Palau. Physical cards already exist.
Planned uses for the new RNS ID NFTs include Know Your Customer (KYC) functions, access to digital banking, verified on-chain signatures and accessing services requiring government-issued identification.
“There’s regulations we need to work on within the digital residency program, but more importantly, the Corporate Registry Act,” Whipps continued. “It’s good to have a commitment from Binance to help us from the regulatory side.”
Palau introduced its Root Name System (RNS) Digital Residency program in January.
California-based Cryptic Labs took part in the development of the program, which provides global citizens with identity cards issued by the government of Palau. Physical cards already exist.
Planned uses for the new RNS ID NFTs include Know Your Customer (KYC) functions, access to digital banking, verified on-chain signatures and accessing services requiring government-issued identification.
“There’s regulations we need to work on within the digital residency program, but more importantly, the Corporate Registry Act,” Whipps continued. “It’s good to have a commitment from Binance to help us from the regulatory side.”
CZ went on to call Palau, which has a population of less than 20,000, a “very good prototyping ground.” Palau has distinct advantages for innovation, he said, as small countries are able to move fast to innovate, and Palau’s “kind of U.S.-driven” economy is fairly well-developed.