Navigating Adoption and Interoperability: Insights from the EBSI-CAN wallet providers meeting
In a recent meeting between EU and Canadian wallet providers on April 30th, 2024, the challenges, opportunities, and gaps within the EBSI-CAN project were extensively discussed. The outcomes shed light on two primary challenges: adoption and interoperability. These challenges are multifaceted and require strategic approaches for resolution.
External participants:
- Irene Hernandez, Founder and CEO of GATACA
- Adam Lemmon, MATTR Labs Director, North America at MATTR.
Addressing adoption entails convincing users, relying parties, and issuers to embrace the new digital identity system—a three-sided market dilemma. Potential solutions include incentivising early adopters and leveraging the higher education sector as a catalyst for adoption. Efforts must focus on engaging relying parties to identify use cases and necessary credentials for fostering adoption.
On the interoperability front, challenges revolve around evolving standards and trust framework compatibility. While achieving technical interoperability seems feasible with standardisation efforts, understanding and trusting the information within credentials pose additional complexities. Integrating with trust registries and frameworks, such as PCTF, emerges as a crucial step in ensuring trust in entities and information.
Furthermore, discussions highlighted the technical and governance aspects of achieving interoperability. Considerations include whether a wallet-centric approach or a federated model with a centralised registry would be more suitable. While the wallet-centric approach simplifies verification, it introduces complexities in wallet management. A federated registry, where issuers are registered across multiple trust frameworks, emerges as a potential solution for scalability.
Incentivising adoption, particularly in Canada, requires aligning incentives, enhancing usability, and addressing mindset barriers toward digitalisation. Successful strategies in Europe, such as funding programs and early adopter benefits, serve as valuable examples. However, striking a balance between usability enhancements and technical standards remains a challenge.
Ultimately, driving adoption and achieving interoperability necessitates collaboration, deeper analysis, and engagement with stakeholders from both technical and educational realms. By addressing these challenges strategically, the EBSI-CAN project can pave the way for a more seamless and trusted digital identity ecosystem.
Watch the discussion here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c3ecEuWxOjI&t=2596s
