Tag: it

Ant Group Partners with Dell, Hewlett-Packard and Lenovo to Enable Access for its New Blockchain Solution—AntChain

Ant Group, formerly known as Ant Financial, the payments arm of Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba, has launched a new blockchain solution, AntChain.

Ant Group has signed an agreement with Dell, Hewlett-Packard, and Lenovo to enable accessibility of IT leasing services for small to medium enterprises (SMEs) through the AntChain blockchain solution. 

The launch of AntChain aims to strengthen transparency and to build trust in industries involving a large number of participants and involves long and inefficient processes, such as supply chain. The executive chairman of Ant Group said: 

“Since our inception, building trust has been core to our offer to customers. We believe in blockchain’s potential to redefine trust in the digital age, and in solving real-life problems for our customers.”

The AntChain blockchain solution leverages emerging technologies including artificial intelligence and the internet of things (IoT). The new blockchain solution has been used in more than 50 use cases so far, in IT leasing, shipping, insurance claim processing, cross-border remittances, and even donations, according to the company.

Ant Group has been exploring the use of blockchain for its commercial applications since 2015, and has now reached the milestone where it has the capability to process and support one billion user accounts and transactions every day.

According to Ant Group, there are over 100 million digital transaction records, copyright certificates, property ownership certificates, and digital assets uploaded onto AntChain every day. 

Ant Group’s OpenChain blockchain platform

Ant Group launched OpenChain in April 2020, a new blockchain platform that gives developers and SMEs the power to leverage the Chinese giant’s proprietary blockchain consortium and efficiently and cost-effectively deploy smart contracts and create decentralized apps (DApps).

The main blockchain platform has already been extensively used in enterprise blockchain solutions for firms such as Bayer in agriculture and China Everbright Bank in supply chain finance.

Ant Group set to top Hong Kong and Shanghai’s IPO market in 2020

Ant Group has announced earlier this week its intentions of launching an initial public offering (IPO) that would be featured both on the Shanghai Stock Exchange’s STAR board and the Stock Exchange of Hong Kong.

By dually listing the IPO on both HKEX and the Shanghai Stock Exchange, Ant hopes this will broaden the horizons of the fintech firm globally. Jing, commented on the IPO listing saying, “The innovative measures implemented by the SSE STAR market and the SEHK have opened the doors for global investors to access cutting edge technology companies from the most dynamic economies in the world and for those companies to have greater access to the capital markets. We are thrilled to have the opportunity to play a part in this development.”

Japanese Multinational’s Blockchain App Taps India’s Tech Talent Pool Neglected By Trump’s Visa Ban

NEC Corporation, the Japanese multinational firm is taking advantage of the hole created by President Donald Trump’s US H-1B visa ban, which has left thousands of technology talents in limbo as they are unable to secure work within the United States with their specialized skills.

NEC Corporation, a Japanese multinational information technology and electronics company, has partnered with Persol Career, a job-hunting firm, to pilot its blockchain app to help corporate Japan recruit Indian tech engineers. Nearly 2000 Indians are expected to be hired via the app in the next three years, according to Nikkei Asian Review. 

Addressing the recruitment headache

Japanese firms have been finding it cumbersome getting skilled tech personnel. The blockchain-powered app will fill this void from a vast array of Indian engineers. 

As per the announcement:

“The app will aid Japanese companies as they struggle to find skilled tech workers. With President Donald Trump’s administration suspending the issuance of U.S. H-1B work visas, Japan’s business community has more opportunities to tap the large pool of Indian engineers.”

The app’s pilot version is to go live later this month, while its full launch is scheduled for March 2021. Prospective candidates will take a skills test undertaken by Indian-based startup HackerEarth, and results stored in the blockchain app and other information like educational backgrounds. 

Deterring academic falsification 

By leveraging the blockchain app, Japanese companies will be provided with authentic academic credentials from prospective hires. Internet services provider GMO Internet is among six companies expected to trial the app for three months. 

Japan is expected to grapple with a hiring gap of approximately 800,000 IT engineers by 2030. This shows a tight supply in the nation’s labor market.

According to the announcement:

“Persol said 7.05 job openings existed for every midcareer IT and communications professional seeking a job in June. This indicates a much tighter supply of workers than in the country’s overall labor market, where there are 1.66 openings per applicant.”

The blockchain app seeks to offer light at the end of the tunnel by assisting in the recruitment of IT engineers. It is speculated to be rolled out in other target countries. 

A global UAE Bank is also building a blockchain-enabled architecture for sovereign and federated digital identities to curb forgery and identity theft. 

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