The key topics for the 2016 edition of the Luxembourg Internet Days, which brought together more than 1000 participants from the Grand Duchy and further afield, were the Internet of Things, the ecosystem of start-ups, and blockchain technology.

In his address, Xavier Bettel praised the growth of the organization, which has 62 members already. “Since its creation seven years ago, LU-CIX has developed into an essential feature of the Grand Duchy’s telecom and Internet landscape. LU-CIX has not only survived; it has even managed to expand.”

To ensure in the long term the quality of the service provided by LU-CIX, Xavier Bettel signed a six-year financial cooperation agreement with the organization. “This will enable LU-CIX to offer a reliable service to the Grand Duchy’s digital economy. It is just one of the many elements constituting the Digital Lëtzebuerg initiative, through which we intend not only to provide the country with excellent connectivity but also to make every effort to excel in every other area in which digitization offers us new opportunities.”

Infrachain – the launch of a blockchain initiative

In his address, Xavier Bettel emphasized the ability of the Grand Duchy’s ecosystem to adapt rapidly to circumstances that were in constant flux: “We want to remain stakeholders in our own future, not merely distant observers of technological change.” To prepare the Grand Duchy’s ecosystem for the large-scale technological opportunity blockchain technology represents, Xavier Bettel announced – as part of the Digital Lëtzebuerg initiative – the launch of the Infrachain initiative. The purpose of the recent signature of a memorandum of understanding between five private- and public-sector stakeholders is to build up a common blockchain infrastructure.

Work will begin immediately, with the constitution of working groups whose aims are to establish a system of governance, to set up a common technical base, and to make sure the infrastructure complies with the legal framework in force. In addition to the five signatories of the MoU (Digital Lëtzebuerg, CTIE, LuxTrust, Telindus, InTech), participation in the working groups is open to any stakeholder wishing to make a contribution to the initiative.

The purpose of creating a trusted blockchain infrastructure, set up jointly by the public and private sectors, is to make it easier to deploy solutions based on blockchain technology, both for start-ups and for established stakeholders, in a regulated framework that promotes trust on the part of final users and investors. The Prime Minister also took the opportunity to meet business representatives from the emerging sector of blockchain technology to discuss the technology and its economic opportunities for the Grand Duchy.