(EBSI-Vector Information Pills: Strategy I)
As the EBSI-VECTOR project approaches its conclusion in May 2025, we’re launching the “EBSI-VECTOR Information Pills”—a series of short articles offering a structured overview of the project’s key activities and results. In the coming weeks, we’ll publish concise pieces that first explore the needs that gave rise to the project, then outline the technical specifications and standards that guided its development, and finally highlight the main outcomes and impacts. Today, we invite you to read the first installment.
To begin the story of the EBSI-VECTOR project, one of the first tasks was a Needs Assessment—analyzing the institutional, legal, organizational, and technical requirements for successful EBSI implementation across Europe. A key tool in this process was a targeted survey, shared with experts from the European Blockchain Partnership (EBP), the EBSI Early Adopters Programme (EAP), and other key stakeholders. The objective: to identify challenges and assess readiness levels across all dimensions critical to EBSI adoption.
Key findings for this conducted survey included:
- Legal & Regulatory: there is moderate preparedness, but aligning EU frameworks such as eIDAS and GDPR with diverse national regulations remains a challenge, often slowing down unified adoption.
- Institutional Readiness: while government support for EBSI is generally present, technical hurdles and administrative complexity continue to delay concrete implementation efforts.
- Organizational Aspects: several countries have established dedicated blockchain teams, but skills gaps and occasional cultural resistance to innovation still hamper widespread deployment.
- Technology & Interoperability: readiness is moderate, yet cross-border integration and ensuring interoperability between systems and institutions remain significant technical obstacles.
- Education: higher education institutions are more prepared to issue and manage verifiable credentials than secondary schools, though lack of standardization continues to be a barrier.
- Social Security: this sector faces limited awareness of blockchain potential and suffers from digital divide issues, which hinder progress toward adoption and transformation.
Thus, Interoperability emerged as a central challenge, requiring better standardization and clearer communication on GDPR and eIDAS compliance. The recommendations stress a holistic approach, prioritizing workforce development, regulatory clarity, stakeholder engagement, and improved communication.
The whole work and its findings are fully documented in Deliverable D2.1: Needs Assessment Report, accessible on the EBSI-VECTOR project website. We encourage you to explore it in detail!
We hope you enjoyed this first EBSI-VECTOR Information Pill. Stay tuned, as we’ll be publishing new pills every Monday and Friday over the coming weeks. Keep an eye out for more insights, as well as other exciting news and events related to the EBSI-VECTOR project!
