The government of Malta has reportedly given out blockchain scholarships, which has a total value of 160,000 euro ($179,000) to 19 university attendees. 

According to the local media outlet the Malta Independent on May 23rd, Silvio Schembri – Parliamentary Secretary of the Financial Services – has approved to turn the previously launched €300,000 fund by the Malta Digital Innovation Authority (MITA), along with the University of Malta in August last year, into scholarships.

Said scholarships will be particularly awarded to any university students who are interested in obtaining a master’s degree in the field of blockchain and distributed ledger technologies (DLT) along with a few specific scholarships awarded for ones who look to gain knowledge in integrating blockchain tech in fields such as law, finance, business, and ICT.

The scholarships, which were publicly introduced during the Malta AI and Blockchain Summit, are said to be unprecedented in this type of academic awards, according to Schembri.

Apart from the news about the blockchain scholarships, Schembri further revealed that the Malta Financial Services Authority will be releasing required licenses that would allow blockchain-related firms to operate freely in the Malta region. Schembri claimed that the total number of blockchain businesses working in Malta will shoot up to 800 at the end of the year.