UAE Shifts National Digital Identity System to Avalanche Blockchain
The UAE's national digital identity system, UAEPASS, is shifting its infrastructure to the Avalanche blockchain ecosystem. The Telecommunications and Digital Government Regulatory Authority (TDRA) will move the underlying blockchain network from Quorum, an enterprise platform based on Ethereum, to a dedicated Layer 1 network within Avalanche.
This change aims to enhance performance and support future scalability for UAEPASS, which serves over 12.5 million users. The system enables online identity verification, digital signatures, and access to government and private services. UAEPASS operates at a significant scale with more than 15,000 available services and over 350 organizations using the platform.
Digital Vault, a component of UAEPASS, uses distributed ledger technology for securely managing verified documents. This move to Avalanche will give UAEPASS its own computing resources, reducing reliance on third-party applications. TDRA also retains control over network access and configuration, which is crucial for a government platform serving millions.
Avalanche has already been used in major government projects, such as California's Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV), where it digitized 42 million vehicle records. This initiative cut the time required to transfer vehicle ownership from around 2 weeks to just minutes.