SSI advocates welcome EU digital wallet, IOTA sees opportunity

Self-sovereign identity (SSI) advocates are celebrating a win after the European Parliament approved legislation last week that will bring digital identity wallets to its residents.

The European Parliament endorsed legislation regulating the European Digital Identity (EUDI) Wallet last week by a wide margin. Aside from bringing all European residents a digital wallet, the regulation, known as eIDAS 2.0 (electronic IDentification, Authentication, and Trust Services), will mark the introduction of self-sovereign identity (SSI), helping end-users gain more control over how their data is being handled.

“The last 6 years of my career, I have been preparing for #SSI adoption and another massive step has been made today!” CEO of digital identity service provider Impierce Technologies Jelle Millenaar said on X (formerly Twitter) last week.

The legislation was also welcomed by the IOTA Foundation which hopes to find a place for its blockchain technology for decentralized identity within the European project. Its product IOTA Identity aims to consolidate identity management under a singular protocol, helping different identity types achieve seamless interaction, according to Crypto News Flash.

The IOTA Foundation is participating in the European Blockchain Services Infrastructure (EBSI) pre-commercial procurement (PCP), which pilots distributed ledger technology. Identity is one of the several key areas covered by the project.

“The @IOTA #EBSI Team now officially finished the final phase 2B of the @EU_EBSI #PCP project yesterday with a dense 6 hour workshop summarizing the 805 pages final report. We had a very good discussion with the @EU_Commission on various aspects of the tech and use cases,” Christoph F. Strnadl, deputy CTO at Software AG, said on X this Friday.

Businesses will gain from EUDI Wallet

The pan-European digital wallet seeks to include residents and businesses within EU member states, allowing them to digitize and make interoperable identity documents and other attributes such as degrees, driving licenses and professional certifications.

The project is bringing more privacy to individuals but it’s also set to open up opportunities for businesses, writes Alejandro Leal, research analyst at identity-focused analysis firm KuppingerCole.

“Moving beyond the regulatory landscape, the business implications of digital identities extend far beyond traditional Identity and Access Management (IAM) frameworks,” says Leal. “These digital identities serve as enablers for cross-organizational use, offering reusable, decentralized approaches that improve and expand business processes.”

The eIDAS regulation means that citizens and businesses can use digital wallets to link different documents and attributes and access public and private services. The EUDI Wallet will also help with identity verification (KYC) and user authentication which will benefit companies in enhancing security and reliability.

Another perk for businesses is integration with major platforms such as social networks, e-commerce platforms and search engines.

“By enabling interoperability with these gatekeeper platforms, enterprises can ensure widespread acceptance of the EU Wallet among users,” says Leal.

eIDAS now awaits its final stamp of approval from the Council of Ministers and is expected to enter into force by the end of March. After the regulation enters force, regulators will have six months to finalize the technical specifications of the EU Digital ID Wallet. By 2026, all EU member states are mandated to provide digital wallets to every resident.

Article Topics

biometrics  |  digital identity  |  EU Digital Identity Wallet  |  IOTA Foundation  |  KuppingerCole  |  self-sovereign identity