The Qatar Financial Center’s Digital Assets Lab sparks global collaboration in the field of blockchain

Two prominent participants in the Digital Assets Lab at the Qatar Financial Centre, an influential onshore financial and trading hub, have collaborated to accelerate the adoption and impact of distributed ledger technologies (DLT) and digital assets across various industries. The collaboration between SettleMint, a blockchain transformation company, and The Hashgraph Group (THG), an international venture capital and technology organization based in Switzerland, aims to make DLT solutions accessible to enterprises around the world, promoting widespread global adoption.

The lab, which launched in September 2024, began its inaugural cohort with 29 innovators. Its primary goal is to provide a robust ecosystem to develop, test and commercialize advanced solutions tailored to industry challenges through digital assets and distributed ledger technologies. By fostering collaboration between startups, established companies and researchers, the Lab has positioned itself as a key player in driving innovation within the sector.

Pioneering innovation in the Qatari market

The partnership between SettleMint and THG is an important milestone for the laboratory, enhancing its role in shaping the industry and contributing to the Qatari market. The laboratory’s efforts aim to position Qatar as a leading country in the field of emerging technologies and strengthen its economy through diversification and dynamism.

Yousef Mohammed Al-Jaida, CEO of the Qatar Financial Centre, praised that this partnership confirms the laboratory’s success in enhancing cooperation and innovation. He stressed the laboratory’s role in enhancing Qatar’s leadership in advanced technologies and its contribution to economic diversification in the country.

Build a thriving Web3 ecosystem

Kamal Yousfi, President of The Hashgraph Association (THA), stressed the importance of strategic partnerships as a cornerstone of THA’s approach. He expressed his enthusiasm to collaborate with innovative organizations to co-create value and support the development of a strong Web3 ecosystem that leverages the capabilities of the Hedera platform. Yousefi stressed the Health Authority’s commitment to the QFC’s vision of institutionalizing digital assets and consolidating Qatar’s position as a regional hub for innovative Web3 solutions, including asset tokenization, decentralized finance (DeFi) and cross-chain finance. He also stressed the compatibility of the partnership with Qatar’s digital strategic goals 2030.

Empowering enterprises through Blockchain solutions

Stefan Diess, Founder and CEO of Hashgraph Group, expressed his pleasure in collaborating with SettleMint to integrate Hedera-powered applications for enterprises in Qatar and beyond. He pointed out that the future of Web3 solutions lies in encoding real-world assets. Diess stressed that the combination of Hedera’s energy-efficient DLT platform, SettleMint’s expertise and the laboratory’s forward-thinking ecosystem will enable companies and governments to transition towards the digital economy.

Matthew Van Niekerk, CEO of SettleMint, emphasized the lab’s role in fostering meaningful partnerships and facilitating the development of next-generation digital asset solutions. He highlighted the strategic partnership as evidence of the laboratory’s effectiveness in uniting industry leaders to achieve impactful results.

Stimulating innovation and sustainable growth

This collaboration demonstrates the Lab’s ability to achieve breakthroughs in digital assets and DLT by enabling industries and economies to embrace advanced technologies. The partnership between SettleMint and THG is expected to accelerate innovation, foster sustainable growth and create new standards in the blockchain and digital assets sectors.