Concordium is a Layer 1, Proof-of-Stake blockchain with its own cryptocurrency. So far, so normal. But Concordium also has a fascinating twist: it incorporates digital identification functionality at the level of the protocol. If predictions of the eventual universality of digital identity are even half-fulfilled, this feature will give Concordium an edge over other Layer 1 blockchains as the digital economy makes use of more efficient, privacy-protecting methods of customer due diligence. The company has raised US$50 million from a small group of investors, whose number includes Lars Seier Christensen, co-founder and until 2016 co-CEO of Saxo Bank, who has identified blockchain as a forcing house for entirely new ways of doing business. Concordium also benefits from its relationships with Aarhus University in Denmark and ETH University in Zurich, where academic researchers are working not only technical issues but also on the governance issues which have plagued Proof of Stake blockchains. Dominic Hobson, co-founder of Future of Finance, spoke to Kåre Kjelstrøm, a veteran of Travis Kalanick start-ups Uber and Cloud Kitchens, who is now chief technology officer at Concordium.

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