The Hashgraph Association Announces Funding for First Cohorts of Projects Completing its Innovation Program

Three cohorts of 12 projects each, all building applications on the Hedera Network, will receive vital funding and professional support.

Schwyz, Switzerland, 20th December 2022 – The Hashgraph Association, the Swiss-headquartered non-profit association accelerating broad adoption of the Hedera network worldwide, has announced the onboarding and qualification of over 35 projects set to receive grant funding and expert coaching to develop Hedera-powered solutions through the Hashgraph Innovation Program. The qualified projects will be developing solutions in FinTech, InsurTech, GreenTech, AgriTech, SportsTech, MediaTech, DeFi, Stablecoins, Web 3.0, Gaming, Metaverse, NFTs, DAOs, and Tokenization.

The Hashgraph Innovation Program, a professional training and innovation program launched by the Association in April 2022, in close collaboration with Swiss Digital Assets Institute (SDAI), will provide grant funding of up to USD 250’000 for startups, USD 750’000 for enterprises, and up to USD 1’500’000 as co-investment for government initiatives, including funding of strategic projects and initiatives that encourage mainstream adoption of the Hedera network around the globe.

Thus far, three cohorts of 12 projects each from around the world have completed the qualification stage and set to develop enterprise-grade solutions and decentralized applications on the Hedera network. Ranging from Europe to the Middle East, Africa, Asia and the Americas, the grant funding enables projects on a global scale. Participating projects include 88i, AgNext, Capturiant, Deca4, Decimal Point Analytics, Friddy, Metacourt, Nazara, For a Better World, One Global, Rivia, Scenic Swisscoast, The M.O., and Twigital.

Kamal Youssefi, President of The Hashgraph Association, said: “One of our major goals at The Hashgraph Association is to empower organizations of all kinds to build on Hedera and to see the widespread adoption of Hedera-powered solutions across industries. The grant funding through the Hashgraph Innovation Program will enable us to fuel the further expansion of the DLT industry by actively supporting new innovation and cutting-edge projects powered by Hedera. We’re proud to play this part in the journey of innovative projects and look forward to building future applications through the Hashgraph Innovation Program.”

The Hashgraph Innovation Program involves developing decentralized applications on Hedera’s energy-efficient enterprise-grade public network. The program has three development stages: 1. Learn & Discover, which includes training and ideation workshops, 2. Visualize & Design, where projects focus on design-thinking and proof-of-concept modeling, concluding with 3. Develop & Deploy, which covers the development of a minimum viable product (MVP) and integration. This program is designed to ensure that the long-term strategic objectives of the projects are achieved in terms of product development, technology implementation, utilization, and economic impact.

Stefan Deiss, Director of Swiss Digital Assets Institute (SDAI), said: “We’ve onboarded an initial group of very promising and innovative projects with high-growth potential from around the world and across multiple industry verticals, which we look forward to enabling through the Hashgraph Innovation Program to design and develop their enterprise-grade solutions on Hedera network.” In addition, The Hashgraph Association collaborates with some of the world’s leading technology firms and system integrators, which it will be officially announcing in the coming weeks, including leading academic institutions such as the University of Zurich to further promote mainstream use and accessibility of DLT, while attracting the next generation of talented Hedera engineers.

Youssefi added: “Right now, the DLT space is evolving and quickly maturing. It might be easy to downplay the levels of adoption of this technology across the sectors, but what we’re seeing is a steady cadence of interest and innovation that reassures us of DLT’s strong future. Hedera has a track record of improving efficiencies and developing innovative enterprise solutions. Looking ahead, we’re excited to explore the new industry use cases emerging through our grant program.”

Applications are open for participation in future cohorts of the Hashgraph Innovation Program. Start-ups, enterprises, and government institutions are welcome to apply.

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About The Hashgraph Association

The Hashgraph Association supports training and education programs across multiple industry verticals. In the forefront is the digital enablement and empowerment of the public through broad adoption of Hedera-powered, enterprise-grade solutions, and applications in the decentralized economy, which include accreditation and certification. As a non-profit, the Association funds innovation, research, and development for the benefit of economic inclusion with a positive environmental, social, and governance (ESG) impact. For information about The Hashgraph Association, visit www.hashgraph-association.com.

Swiss Digital Assets Institute 

Swiss Digital Assets Institute (SDAI) is a professional training and innovation company focused on enabling startups, enterprises, and government institutions around the world to adapt and compete in the era of Digital Assets and Decentralized Finance (DeFi). SDAI is specialized in the custom-design and delivery of professional training, certification, and innovation programs in close collaboration with leading academic institutions, technology firms, system integrators, and government organizations globally. For more information about Swiss Digital Assets Institute, visit us at www.sda-institute.com.“We are excited to bring Hedera Hashgraph to Switzerland and to contribute towards accelerating the broad adoption of the Hedera network, as one of the world’s leading and most energy-efficient DLT platforms. We appreciate the endorsement SDAI has received from the Swiss Government through Canton Schwyz and look forward to delivering the Hashgraph Innovation Program, which is designed to promote broad adoption of Hedera and increase its total value locked (TVL) as well as boost its global developer community.”