The Daily Sabah newspaper reported on August 3rd that Turkey had established the country’s first university center for blockchain research, with the objective of guaranteeing the widespread development of technology and filling the gap with other countries.
Turkey to establish the country’s first university center for blockchain research
The Istanbul Blockchain and Innovation Center, also known as BlockchainIST, was inaugurated at Bahcesehir University (BAU).
The BlockchainIST is destined to be “the most important research, development, and innovation center in Turkey where studies and publications on blockchain technologies are carried out,” says Director Bora Erdamar.
Erdamar said that Turkey might be the leading country in the blockchain technology that “will transform humanity.”
It emphasized the importance of collaborating with other educational institutions, businesses and government bodies in order to undertake appropriate research and examine all potential uses.
A few universities around the world already run blockchain educational programmes
A few universities in the world have already launched a number of courses on cryptocurrencies, blockchains, and smart contracts.
This year, Stanford University has established a blockchain research center, partially funded by the Ethereum Foundation, and Brazil’s renowned “Fundação Getúlio Vargas University” has started delivering the country’s first master’s degree in the crypto market.
Ripple has also given away $50 million to some universities worldwide to fund educational programmes related to blockchain and cryptocurrencies.
Turkish official’s position on cryptocurrencies is not yet clear
Even though the Director of BlockchainIST pointed out that Turkey is currently struggling to keep up with the world in digital transition, the stance of the Turkish authorities on the cryptocurrency industry is not entirely straightforward.
In November, the country’s government demonstrated its opposition to Bitcoin (BTC) when the State Department of Religious Affairs’ lawmakers stated that the BTC “is not compatible” with Islam.
But in February, the Vice-Chairman of the Nationalist Party of the Turkish movement not only suggested regulations for the cryptocurrencies market but also raised the problem of a theoretical Turkish government-owned cryptocurrency, the Turkcoin.
