The Hawaii’s Governor has announced a “Digital Currency Innovation Lab” which will be an incubation lab to conduct otherwise unlicensed money transmitting activities.
Iris Ikeda, Hawaii’s commissioner of financial institutions, has underscored that the DFI has given a no-activity message to forestall administrative plan of action for organizations working under the sandbox who take part in what might regularly be viewed as unlicensed cash transmission exercises.
“DFI is leveraging its statutory authority to provide an innovative way to introduce digital currency issuers into the State of Hawaii, while ensuring the safety of our consumers. By acknowledging digital currencies as a transmission vehicle of the future, we will be able to craft legislation that is conducive to its development in Hawaii,” says Ikeda.
Len Higashi, acting executive director of HTDC believes that lessons learned through the pilot program can assist the State in developing expertise in and becoming an early adopter of digital currency. “By spearheading the Digital Currency Innovation Lab, Hawaii can position itself on the forefront of financial technology and potentially, reap the economic benefits that accompany the leadership stance taken.”
Interested companies have until May 1 to apply for the program, and must pay a $500 application fee plus $1,000 for each term of participation.
In 2017, Hawaii presented the twofold save necessity, ordering that organizations working with virtual monetary standards hold an equivalent entirety of fiat and their customers’ crypto property.
Despite the fact that crypto organizations were not disallowed from working in the express, the guideline drove most blockchain firms working in Hawaii somewhere else — including driving U.S.- based crypto trade Coinbase.
The Digital Currency Innovation Lab will start accepting applications from March 17, 2020 to May 1, 2020 online. For more details on the pilot program and application process, visit the HTDC website at: www.htdc.org/programs/#dcil-section.
Earlier in the year, Rhode Island state representatives David Place and Blake Filippi sponsored a new bill on March 11, called the Rhode Island Economic Growth Blockchain Act. Complete with a state regulatory sandbox, the filing pointed toward blockchain and other emerging technologies as a way of keeping up with the times.
“That sandbox concept is for the cryptocurrencies,” Place said.
