Qatar Financial Centre advances blockchain uptake in Islamic finance 

Qatar Financial Centre has rolled out a proof of concept to facilitate the uptake of blockchain technology across Islamic finance. 

The Qatar-based business hub will demonstrate a blockchain-based digital receipt system to bolster transparency and regulatory compliance in Shariah-compliant asset-backed finance. 

The system will operate on HashSphere, a private distributed ledger technology (DLT) built by software company Hashgraph, utilising Google Cloud infrastructure, in collaboration with QFC’s Digital Assets Lab, a statement said. 

A distributed ledger is a database shared by multiple participants in which each member maintains and updates a synchronized copy of the data. The ledger enables members to verify, execute and record transactions, obviating reliance on intermediary entities such as banks, brokers or auditors. 

QFC will offer infrastructure support and expertise to guide the use case development, Blade Labs will lead the develop of the receipt system, while AlRayan Bank will validate the system’s functionality and explore commercialisation pathways. 

“Through our Digital Assets Lab, we’re proud to facilitate this pilot as a step forward in exploring how blockchain can bring greater efficiency and scalability to Shariah-compliant financial products,” said Yousuf Mohamed Al-Jaida, chief executive officer at QFC. 

“The Digital Receipt System POC will showcase that blockchain, smart contracts, and global identity standards can address the operational bottlenecks that currently prevent Islamic finance institutions from scaling certain Shariah-compliant asset-backed products,” said Sami Mian, CEO, Blade Labs. 

In 2023, QFC signed an agreement with blockchain technology platform to collaborate on blockchain and digital asset initiatives in the financial industry.