Italy’s Government Could Soon Set A Legal Foundation For Blockchain Timestamping

In today’s crypto news, we are going to Italy where the government of the country is viral for its plans to amend the regulations and with that allow legalized blockchain timestamping and validation of digital documents.

As the country’s senate (Senato della Repubblica) unveiled in a proposal published on Wednesday, distributed ledger technology and smart contract-related terms could soon be part of the Act No. 989 which was passed in December 2018.

Aside from the definitions of blockchain and smart contracts in the amendment, the proposal also includes a part which focuses on the recording of electronic documents using technologies that are based on distributed ledgers and “produce the legal effects of the electronic time validation referred to in Article 41 of EU Regulation no. 910/2014.”

The amendment has already been approved by the senate committees of Constitutional Affairs and Public Works, as data from Finance Magnates showed. However, new approval must be now gained from the Italian Parliament.

As soon as this happens, the Agency for Digital Italy will define the technical standards for the practical use of blockchain verification in the country, as the announcement showed.

Meanwhile, Italy is also known for signing a joint declaration last month along with six southern EU states to take the lead on blockchain and eventually transform its economy.