The government of Sweden is testing a system for registering and recording land titles that utilizes blockchain in a bid to digitize real estate processes.
Lantmäteriet, or the Swedish National Land Survey, revealed today that it is working with blockchain startup ChromaWay, consulting firm Kairos Future and telephone service provider Telia on a proof-of-concept that investigates how blockchain tech could reduce the risk of manual errors while creating more secure processes for transferring documents.
For the proof-of-concept, ChromaWay CEO Henrik Hjelte indicated that Telia’s technology was used to verify the identity of users registered on a new smart contract system developed by his startup. The demo serves as the first showcase for ChromaWay's technology, which it said allows smart contracts to be used with any underlying blockchain, be it bitcoin, Ethereum or a private network.
Kairos Future, in turn, managed the process and coordinated an accompanying report, while Lantmäteriet provided feedback and sponsorship for the effort.
Kairos Future senior consultant Magnus Kempe indicated that he believes the biggest benefit of the project is the transparency that the blockchain-based system could provide, and how it could position Sweden as a leader in working with the nascent technology.
Kempe told CoinDesk:
"What we’re focused on here is the smart contract controlling and making the process visible and transparent. Credit documents are normally something that the buyer and the buyer’s bank are only meant to see, and this technology will allow that to be held private."
Going forward, Kempe and Hjeltes said that Stockholm-based Landshypotek Bank has already signed on to provide additional funding for the project. Further, they said more banks and real estate industry experts would be consulted to help build on the project.
The project comes as governments around the world are showing growing interest in using blockchain technology to improve the land registry process.
In April, bitcoin mining and technology company BitFury unveiled a pilot with the National Agency of Public Registry in the Republic of Georgia. The project followed a reported initiative in Honduras that popularized the concept, yet has failed to fully materialize with public acknowledgement from the government.
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Cool.
There's another project called Bitland that's gotten some press, including an article in Forbes working on a similar project in Ghana - crowd funded via an ICO.
It'll be interesting to compare the developments side-by-side and see how each plays out.
Surely, Sweden already has a stronger governmental infrastructure in place so could probably get the systems implemented faster. Bitland has a whole side of community development projects underway in tandem with the land registry aspect, so it might take slower, though could have a far greater impact on the local community.
Looks like there's also another experiment with the strategy starting up in The Republic of Georgia, [also covered by Forbes](http://www.forbes.com/sites/laurashin/2016/04/21/republic-of-georgia-to-pilot-land-titling-on-blockchain-with-economist-hernando-de-soto-bitfury/#45fd5ba06550).And there was an attempt in Honduras, though it got stalled
It will be interesting to see how each get embraced and fly in the different countries.In well developed countries the greatest issue might be technical; how to reduce overhead and human errors. Also how to prevent corruption/abuse. In these cases an immutable record like the blockchain might be a good improvement.
On the other hand, the greatest benefits of a functioning system would be where the systems just don't work today, like developing and former communist countries. In those countries the problem clearly isn't technical. Technical solutions have already existed for decades, but the things still just don't work in these countries. The problem is clearly more political. Anyone can submit a claim of property ownership to a blockchain, but who are the contract parties? What enforces ownership in the physical world? It must be a sovereign authority, and the record on the blockchain is valid only if the authority recognizes it.
If a land registry on a blockchain gained some massive approval and adoption in extralegal communities of developing countries, it could have a chance of becoming the de-facto system and to force the authorities to recognize and even adopt it. It will take years and decades to happen, and meanwhile some authority is needed to settle disputes. It's no small problem, but let's hope it happens. Hats off to those making an effort to improve the situation. There is massive potential in solving this dead capital problem.
The fact that western countries are experimenting with blockchains might showcase the potential to developing countries. Copying systems from well functioning countries would be a good start in a positive change, so it's nice to see Sweden taking lead.
We want to explore this idea to contribute to peace process in Colombia https://steemit.com/colombia/@jpca78/how-blockchain-could-contribute-to-the-peace-process-in-colombia