Internet and Mobile Association of India establishes blockchain committee

The Internet and Mobile Association of India (IAMAI) has formed a blockchain committee that will work with the government, industry, and startups to develop the domestic blockchain ecosystem, The Economic Times reported.

The new committee will be chaired by Tina Singh, Chief Digital Officer, Mahindra Finance and co-chaired by Prasanna Lohar, Head –Innovation and Architecture, DCB Bank Limited.

Other prominent members include Manish Gupta, Director- Digital Transformation, Mastercard; Samiran Ghosh, Chief Digital Advisor, Microsoft; Jitan S Chandanani, Blockchain Offerings and Engagement Leader - ISA, IBM; Ravi Chamria, Founder, Sofocle Technologies; Sandeep Goenka, Founder, Zebpay; S Venkat Kumar, Vice President, Kotak; and Nitin Chug, Country Head- Digital Banking, HDFC Bank; among others.

“Blockchain is undeniably the technology of the future, slated to bring decentralization, trust and accountability into multiple areas of business. However, in order to be more effective and enter the mainstream, blockchain technology needs the intervention of government bodies, regulatory authorities and corporate,” Tina Singh, Chairperson, Blockchain Committee, IAMAI said.

“The IAMAI Blockchain Committee will focus on creating dialogue between all stakeholders; curate and create content to aid skill development and move towards creating a participative economy with the usage of blockchain.”

IAMAI is a not-for-profit industry body that aims to expand and enhance the online and mobile value-added services sectors. It is dedicated to presenting a unified voice of the businesses it represents to the government, investors, consumers and other stakeholders.

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has also been pushing for the adoption of blockchain technology across industries in the country. Speaking at the launch of the Centre for the Fourth Industrial Revolution, set up by the World Economic Forum (WEF), he said that artificial intelligence, machine learning, blockchain, and big data, can take India to new heights of development and improve people’s quality of life, The Indian Express reported.