EU to invest $177 billion in blockchain and other emerging technologies

The EU reportedly hopes to support technological development in the region through a $177 billion investment.
According to Bloomberg, EU officials plan to provide direct investments in areas such as blockchain, data infrastructure, 5G and quantum computing.
The planned $177 billion investment fund represents about 20% of the 750 billion euro ($887 billion) stimulus package agreed by EU leaders in July 2020 to kick-start economic recovery amid the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen gave a speech on Wednesday, stressing the importance of investing in digital technologies for the entire region.
In fact, part of the investment funds will be used to manufacture low-power processors as EU officials seek to prevent a recurrence of the semiconductor shortage that has affected several industries around the world.
While the EU has revealed the focus areas of its $177 billion technology investment fund, there is no information on the amount of investment in each sector.
Earlier in September, the Iota Foundation was selected along with six other companies to support the early development of the European Blockchain Services Infrastructure — an EU-wide distributed ledger technology project.
Back in April 2019, the EU launched the International Association for Trusted Blockchain Applications, with a mission to support and promote the adoption of DLT in the region.
In fact, blockchain has been identified as one of the more important emerging technologies that could shape Europe’s future. Because of this, EU officials are pushing for region-wide legal standards to prevent regulatory fragmentation.
However, a recent survey suggests that most Europeans prefer national regulations for cryptocurrencies and blockchain rather than European regulatory standards for the emerging industry.
Meanwhile, the EU and the US may soon begin collaborating on drafting regulatory standards for cryptocurrencies and blockchain. (Cointelegraph)