Republic of Palau to Deploy Sovereign-Backed RNS Identity NFT on BNB BAS Chain
KOROR, PALAU — JUNE 10, 2022 — The Republic of Palau has announced that the ID cards for its Digital Residents from over 55 countries will be issued concurrently in the form of ID NFTs using the BNB Chain, Binance’s open-source blockchain. The ID NFTs, issued on the RNS.ID platform, mark the world’s first instance of national identification being deployed as NFTs on the blockchain. The news comes following a meeting with Palau President Surangel S. Whipps, Jr. and Changpeng Zhao (CZ), Founder and CEO of Binance, to discuss the future of digital sovereignty and Palau’s Web3 initiatives.
The Republic of Palau’s President Surangel S. Whipps, Jr. said, “Palau has taken a bold step to embrace digital innovation, and we are pleased that Binance is open to partnering with our Digital Residency Program. As the global digital landscape develops, we commit to working with like-minded partners to create equitable and credible access to financial initiatives.”
Palau made headlines earlier this year with the announcement by President Whipps, Jr. in January 2022 of the RNS Digital Residency program. The Digital Residency program was launched with the mission to democratize access to worldwide financial opportunities by providing global citizens with a government-issued ID card from Palau.
The new RNS ID NFT enhances the existing physical ID card, enabling users to perform digitally native KYC electronically and unlocking access to a variety of services requiring a government-issued ID. At its core, the RNS ID NFT is designed to empower individuals from around the world to access digital banking and identity-required services.
Planned use cases for the RNS ID NFT include address verification, KYC verification, access to digital banking, legally verified on-chain signature, digital company incorporation services, and other potential products such as asset ownership and insurance. The RNS ID NFTs are described to be built using leading zero-knowledge (ZK) proof technologies with user privacy and security in mind.
Changpeng Zhao (CZ), Founder and CEO of Binance said: “At Binance, our key priorities include growing adoption of crypto and establishing new use cases for blockchain technology. To achieve these goals, we look to innovative partners such as the government of Palau. President Whipps, Jr. is a visionary when it comes to the adoption of blockchain, and there is significant potential that exists with these shared initiatives with the Government of Palau.”
In addition to marking the launch of the RNS ID NFTs, Binance’s visit to Palau led to the announcement of the new RNS chain, built with the BNB application sidechain infrastructure, where the RNS ID NFTs will be issued.
The RNS ID NFTs will be minted to all digital residents after they are approved, subject to meeting eligibility requirements and passing KYC verification. Interested users can apply for Palau Digital Residency at www.rns.id.
PRESS CONFERENCE VIDEO LINK: https://youtu.be/ygHWFeTtdIg
