NEM (XEM) to Open Blockchain Center at Victorian Innovation Hub in Melbourne, Australia

The Australian blockchain ecosystem has received a boost with the launch of NEM blockchain hub. The hub will be based in Melbourne and will be equipped with NEM personnel to help the public gain a better understanding of blockchain and digital currency. Besides knowledge dissemination, the hub will provide support for organizations willing to incorporate blockchain technology contributing to growth of the NEM ecosystem. Activities organized through the hub will run throughout the year and will include workshops, forums among others. The launch of the hub comes amid massive growth of the NEM blockchain in the Asia Pacific over the past year.

The Melbourne hub will be based at the Victorian Innovation hub which serves in excess of 360 startups, accelerators and incubators in Australia. The innovation hub was developed to facilitate collaborations across different sectors. NEM’s blockchain hub and blockchain centre will also join the Stone & Chalk community also based in Melbourne. The community’s general manager, Tsen expressed his excitement in welcoming NEM and looks forward to collaborations to help grow the blockchain ecosystem.

The NEM hubs are overseen by Jian Chan who also serves as the foundation’s lead for Australia and New Zealand. Jian notes NEM’s commitment towards innovation globally as a major influence for the launch of the Melbourne hub. NEM began its operations in Australia following the FinTech Australia intersekt festival in 2017 and has since grown to over 40 countries. The NEM foundation has plans to open more hubs in the Asia Pacific to join the already existing Brisbane and Westport and New Zealand hubs.

LaunchVic, Stone & Chalk, Data 61, That Startup Show, Startmate, Sprout X and The Medtech Actuator are some of the other members at the hub. These hosted organizations operate across a variety of industries such as government agencies, not-for-profit, agricultural technology, medical technology among others. The Blockchain centre, another recent addition into the Victorian innovation hub has been working with NEM to educate the community on the different blockchain protocols.

The NEM blockchain is setting itself apart from competition through its wide range of applications. The blockchain has fast transaction speeds and creates new books every 60 seconds. Other features it provide include encrypted messaging, easy authentication and notarization of documents, anticounterfeit and certificate issuance among others. Voting, crowdfunding, stock ownership and ICOs are also tools that can be leveraged by organizations building on the NEM blockchain.

The NEM blockchain has continued to attract companies all over the globe with hundreds using the platform to develop products and solutions. NEM provides funding for start-ups developing on its protocol. As of writing, 5 Australia and New Zealand based startups had qualified for the funding which is aimed at increasing the adoption of the NEM blockchain. A key area in which the start ups use the NEM blockchain is in the development of organizational frameworks. Some of the companies currently developing on NEM include CopyrightBank, RocketShoes, TravelbyBit, Choice and Origins with more expected to join. Others have chosen NEM over other platforms to facilitate the development of dApps complete with initial coin offerings.

The NEM blockchain offers a number of benefits to its users and organizations that chose to develop on its protocol. This include facilitation of instant payments anywhere in the world, seamless integration with both public and private blockchains, the ability to create other coins or tokens e.g. through initial coin offerings and the facilitation of mobile payments. The NEM blockchain can also be used to make equity markets more efficient and cheaper, as a basis for escrow services and development of payment applications such as NemPay. Business management tools available through the NEM blockchain include automatic accounting, know your customer (KYC), loyalty rewards, logistics, shipping and inspection tools.

NEM (XEM) the platform's native currency is the 17th most popular by market capitalization with a valuation of just over USD 863 million with each coin selling at USD 0.0959. Australia is setting itself apart as a blockchain development hub with several blockchain companies in the country. They include Perth based DigitalX, Power Ledger, Data61 ANZ and Westpac, Red Belly Blockchain among others. The combination of development hubs and availability of a variety of blockchain based companies and crypto exchanges creates a great collaborative and supportive environment for continued growth and adoption of the blockchain technology both in the Asia Pacific and globally.