The Linux Foundation wants to tackle digital wallets next

(Image credit: Linux Foundation)

The Linux Foundation has announced plans to form a new entity, the OpenWallet Foundation (OWF), which will provide the basis for companies to create digital wallets on an open source platform.

“The mission of the OWF is to develop a secure, multi-purpose open source engine anyone can use to build interoperable wallets," the organization explained.

“The OWF aims to set best practices for digital wallet technology through collaboration on open source code for use as a starting point for anyone who strives to build interoperable, secure, and privacy-protecting wallets.”

Linux OpenWallet Foundation

The idea behind the OWF is not to create a wallet to rival the likes of Apple Wallet and Google Wallet, but rather to create a “multi-purpose open source engine anyone can use to build interoperable wallets”, which the foundation sees being utilized for things like secure payments and digital keys.

Companies will then be able to leverage the work of the OWF and develop their own digital wallets, which the Linux body says will enhance interoperability, security, and privacy.

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Linux Foundation Executive Director Jim Zemllin said in a statement that “digital wallets will play a critical role for digital societies”, thus the work of the OWF could prove valuable to ensuring a more level playing field in years to come.

Moving forward, Global Metaverse Continuum Business Group & Blockchain Lead at Accenture, David Treat, believes that “universal digital wallet infrastructure will create the ability to carry tokenized identity, money, and objects from place to place in the digital world.”

Meanwhile, Pramod Varma, Chief Architect at Aadhaar & India Stack, sees “verifiable credentials… becoming an essential digital empowerment tool for billions of people and small entities”, which emphasizes the standardization work that the OWF hopes to carry out.

The body’s goal is to launch the new entity later in 2022, and interest to collaborate can be expressed on the OpenWallet Foundation website.

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