Australia’s standards authority, Standards Australia, has asked the International Standards Organisation, commonly known as ISO, to commence work on setting global standards for blockchain technologies.

Geneva-based ISO, the international standard-setting body that is widely recognized as the foremost global standards authority is being called by its Australian member to set up global standards for blockchain, the technology that underpins Bitcoin.

Standards Australia is one of over 160 national standards organizations that the ISO recognizes as members and representatives from around the world.

The revelation was made Standards Australia’s chief executive, Adrian O’Connell in an interview with The Australian today.

In expressing his views for the need to have an ISO standard certification for distributed ledger technology, O’Connell stated:

Having interoperability between the different blockchain traders around the world will be key to unlocking the potential for blockchain. It requires international standards to help unlock its potential and the best means to do it is through the ISO.

Notably, the ISO only requires five members to support a proposal by a member. It is entirely plausible that the ISO agrees to take up the proposal.

“By seeking to have the ISO set up a technical committee on blockchain, we are making it clear we are interested in this area,” he added.

While global banks via R3, stock exchanges, services firms and healthcare companies research and develop distributed ledger applications for various industries, the executive notes the lack of an interoperable global standard to help the innovation.

Speaking to the publication, he opined:

There are different groups working on blockchain projects but there is no concentrated effort to setting up the technical standards and the interoperability standards which are required to enable blockchain.

That is why the ISO exists. It has the capacity, through its members, to have a standards development process including the capacity to liaise with other industry groups.

Blockchain Tech Down Under

Despite several instances wherein Australian banks have taken a hard stance against bitcoin companies by shutting down basic banking services, Australia has otherwise been embracing toward Fintech and the blockchain space.

For instance, Australia’s biggest stock exchange, the Australian Securities Exchange (ASX) is the first of its kind in the world to adopt distributed ledger solutions for its post-trade equity market. Furthermore, the ASX invested AUD $14.9 million for a 5% equity stake in New York-based blockchain startup Digital Asset Holdings.

The partnership also sees the firm develop and provide a distributed ledger solution that will co-exist with the stock exchange’s current clearing system.

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