Blockchain and Distributed Ledger Technologies

This fellowship supports my role as a convener of ISO TCC307 WG3. The priority is to organise the appropriate ballots and meetings to allow the experts to discuss and reach a consensus based on the comments received for the projects in ISO TC 307 WG3. Another priority is to complete the norms with the attendance list and verify that all experts in the meeting were duly registered in the portal and authorised to participate in the meetings.

One of the main challenges of this work has been overcoming the cultural barriers and language differences encountered during this period, particularly through various meetings and ad hoc meetings for the three projects, which are ongoing in preparation for the final stage to publication. 

Standardisation in the field of Blockchain and Distributed Ledger Technologies is imperative to promote interoperability, security, and innovation across European markets. The rapid evolution of these technologies has led to a fragmented landscape of standards globally. This fragmentation presents challenges such as hindered cross-border data flow and increased compliance burdens on European businesses. My activity aims to address these critical gaps by actively participating in the creation of comprehensive, internationally recognized standards.
My engagement in the Joint ISO/TC 307 - ISO/IEC JTC 1/SC 27 WG directly supports this action. By actively participating in WG, I am bolstering Europe's representation and influence in shaping global standards in this transformative domain.
From a European perspective, this activity is pivotal. Europe seeks to not only embrace but lead in the adoption and implementation of Blockchain and Distributed Ledger Technologies. By participating in the development of standards, we ensure that Europe's interests, values, and priorities are ingrained in the foundation of these technologies. This is paramount for bolstering Europe's digital sovereignty, fostering innovation, and ensuring that European businesses remain competitive on the global stage.
 

The priority aims to support the development of European and international standards for DLT/blockchain technologies to ensure transparency in sustainable financing. This contribution brings together the financial, reporting and new technologies to address the gaps between these three sectors.
The challenge for sustainable finance is to minimise the risk of 'greenwashing’ and provide better reporting for the Sustainability sector, ESG investment and Net Zero climate goals and new EU Reporting regulations.
It includes standards development to combine blockchain/DLT Use Cases reflecting sustainable solutions, while the sustainable finance standards cover Terminology and reporting guidelines, and the financial services consider digital currencies and tokenisation.

This contribution aligns with the European Standardisation initiatives, including the effective delivery of ESG investment strategy and Net Zero climate goals, along with the new EU Climate and Sustainable Reporting legislation in 2024 /2025.
 

The objective of this contribution was to design a taxonomy of decentralised identifier and identity terms for further integration into ISO/TC307 works developed by AHG5 and JWG4.
My fellowship was key to address the gap between worldwide blockchain and DLT standards in the fields of identifier and identity management, especially between ISO/TC307, ITU-T and W3C while including some European-led reference documents (i.e. EBSI, eSSIF-Lab and INATBA glossaries).
The main challenge was reaching consensus between ISO/TC307 working groups (especially AHG5 and JWG4) to support the revision of ISO/TS 23258:2021 in order to integrate a taxonomy of decentralised identifier and identity terms.

With this fellowship, I significantly contribute to the ICT Standards landscape by addressing the lack of standardised guidelines for processing Personal Identifiable Information (PII) in blockchain and Distributed Ledger Technology (DLT) systems. Approving the New Work Item Proposal (NWIP) for “Guidelines on processing PII using blockchain and DLT” establishes a crucial foundation for privacy-preserving, GDPR-compliant blockchain applications.
By leading the creation of CEN/CENELEC JTC19 WG3, I am ensuring the development of a harmonised European approach to blockchain privacy, reducing fragmentation and fostering interoperability. These efforts align blockchain implementations with European regulations, consumer protection laws, and data governance principles.
 

My fellowship focuses on standardizing Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs) for sustainable asset management, addressing gaps in digital asset representation, regulatory clarity, and ESG alignment. It supports innovation, transparency, and interoperability in tokenized real-world assets (RWAs), in line with EU priorities.
Current NFT-based RWA systems lack harmonised frameworks, causing fragmentation in asset tracking, legal recognition, and compliance. This hinders adoption across supply chains, carbon markets, and IP management. My project proposes a cross-industry standard to ensure interoperability, regulatory alignment, and lifecycle transparency.
In this sense, the there are two major priorities for this action, including: 
Standardized Multi-Asset Tokenization that enables NFT-based tracking of physical, environmental, and intangible assets. It also enhances lifecycle transparency, supports the circular economy, and ensures blockchain interoperability.
Digital Product Passport (DPP) to align NFTs with DPP for end-to-end traceability, compliance, and ESG reporting.This strengthens supply chain transparency and EU circular economy goals.

The key Challenges related to my activity are: 
Regulatory Uncertainty: Lack of clear NFT standards impedes legal and policy alignment. This initiative ensures conformity with EU law and ISO.
Adoption Barriers: Fragmented governance limits integration. Standardisation enhances technical and regulatory trust.
Sustainability Concerns: Energy-intensive DLTs are problematic. This activity promotes efficient models aligned with the Green Deal.

Consequently, this project positions Europe as a leader in NFT standardisation, fostering secure, compliant, and sustainable digital ecosystems.
 

My fellowship focuses on developing use cases for Blockchain and Distributed Ledger Technology. ISO AWI 24878 builds upon standards development work in ISO 3242:2022, ISO 6039:2023 and ISO 6277:2024. A journey of discovery is underway to identify emerging application domains and novel business applications for blockchain and DLT internationally.  

Blockchain technology is poised to play a fundamental role in democratising internet technology, offering decentralised solutions that prioritise transparency, security, and user empowerment.

This fellowship project has prioritised ‘gap areas’ where the lack of adequate DLT/Blockchain standards is slowing the formulation of government regulations and cross border agencies, or where ambiguity of language is causing confusion or slowing integration of distributed systems.

This project, towards enabling a fairer marketplace for rights holders and remuneration of authors and performers, initiated work on a new standard ISO/IEC 23000-23 Decentralised Media Rights Application Format currently at the Working Draft (WD) stage. 

Through this fellowship project, I am directly pursuing the development, approval, and publication of the following standards: ISO 22739:2024 ‘Blockchain and Distributed Ledger Technologies – Vocabulary’, ISO/TR 24332  ‘Blockchain and Distributed Ledger Technology in relation to authoritative records, records systems, and records management’ and ISO/NP 24982 ‘Digital currencies – Vocabulary’.

With this fellowship, the aim is to create and continue working on a Technical standard proposal, and I decided to push such action to Joint Working Group 4 which is directly in liaison with ISO/SC27 in charge of the security of IT systems.