Finance Minister Harris Georgiades has recently announced that a draft bill to regulate blockchain technology in Cyprus will be ready in 2019.

According to the local finance news site FinancialMirror, Georgiades highlighted the advantages of blockchain technology during a press conference, where he described blockchain as “a new technological revolution similar to that of the internet.”

“Full implementation of this technology across the public and private sector is expected to radically change the structures of modern societies, the way they are organized and their operation”, said House speaker Demetris Syllouris. The National Strategy is expected to enhance the country’s digital transformation, provide the necessary framework and a road map to explore distributed ledger technology (DLT) applications in different industries.

The national blockchain pilot programs will involve multiple stakeholders such as the Department of Land and Surveys, the Department of Customs and Excise, the Tax Department and the National Betting Authority.

“As a country that has faced the most pressing consequences of the economic crisis, we now have an obligation to continue the effort with actions that will broaden the productive base of our economy, render our development model more sustainable, actions that will include the exploitation of innovative technology, just like blockchain technology,” Georgiades said.

Recently, The authority of Nevada, USA has reportedly approved a number of bills, all connected with distributed ledger technology (DLT), in an attempt to further attract blockchain investment to the region.