7 minute read
Interview: Christian Rasmussen Chief Executive Officer, Beyon Connect
SECURE, TRANSPARENT, AND SIMPLE: BEYON CONNECT
Gulf Insider interviews Beyon Connect CEO Christian Rasmussen.
Advertisement
Beyon Connect is focussed on delivering new technologies with great innovation potential, Software-as-a-Service platforms, and advanced IT solutions in the MENA region.
Under the Beyon Connect umbrella, two new products were recently launched: One Box and One ID.
One Box is an innovative digital postbox solution designed to enable national secure communication between the public sector, private businesses, and residents of Bahrain in one secure, convenient, and trusted digital space.
OneID is a highly secure single e-ID which will be made available as a mobile application. It allows onboarding of Bahrain residents through an advanced e-KYC process supporting passport and national ID cards with facial recognition and liveness check.
The new products are being developed to respond to the needs of the public and private sectors, addressing challenges that are becoming more commonplace in the changing digitised economy.
What is the drive and purpose behind Beyon Connect?
Our mission is to create better and more inclusive digital societies for individuals and businesses in the MENA region. To do so, we offer digital seamless communication solutions, in which transparency, security, and efficiency are key elements.
We found that a number of society-created infrastructures have large potential in Bahrain. These infrastructures have been a driver of building better digital societies for Denmark and the Northern countries, which rank high in terms of eGovernment rankings in the United Nations.
Our response was to build a strategy pinpointing the missing elements in order to move up the ranks in comparison to the leading countries. We identified strategic areas focussing on citizen-centered and business-oriented communication, providing a digital identity, and later on utilising these with innovative smart cities integrations.
Essentially, we want to build an ecosystem where individuals or business owners can have any kind of digital proof or digital communication, such as insurance, company, health organizations, car, or house, injected into personal, digital, free of cost mailboxes.
Trust and data privacy are of critical
importance and to this end, we have implemented the highest level of security and personal data protection in our platforms. You always know who the sender is, and public institutions and businesses benefit from the identity verification provided through the secure digital identity. There will be no more forgetting of important official notifications or hospital and bank appointments as these can always be found in the digital postbox.
Is Bahrain your sole focus, or are you taking your solutions and services across the GCC?
While we are headquartered in Bahrain, we have agreements in place with a number of entities in Bahrain and in the GCC and MENA regions. We recently announced MoU signings with Bahrain’s National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) and Egypt Post for OneBox and OneID and we will soon announce further partnerships with other major organisations.
How do you see Beyon Connect evolving over the coming year and five years from now?
Over the coming year, our focus is on rapid growth and establishing lighthouse transformations within private sector businesses and public sector institutions. We have plans to announce subsidiaries across the MENA region during 2022. We intend to take the bottom out of the market, especially for identity solutions by providing highly secure, technically robust and commercially compelling solutions.
In the next five years, we intend to continue launching new products and verticals and rethinking how we communicate. Our driving mission is to continue working on how individuals as well as their identity, can be protected.
Is there anything else you’d like to add or share for our readers to look forward to?
I think it’s important to note that we have a sustainability focus. By 2030, all the countries in the MENA region have an increased obligation to take care of the environment, fighting for people’s rights and equality between men and women. We see the support of these goals as part of our core values.
Bahrain is, of course, one of the higher-ranking countries in this region with regards to this agenda, but we have an opportunity to rank higher. We intend, with our products and services to support this national, societal shift.
Already this year, we are moving to eliminate paper-based non-secure communication as we transition into secure digital correspondence. We want to invest in a society where we focus on the whole cycle of sustainability through harnessing the power of digital. It has already been proven in other leading countries across the world and now we are committed to supporting the Kingdom of Bahrain and the MENA region as a whole to reach their sustainability goals.
For more information about Beyon Connect and its products, visit www.beyonconnect.com and www.onebox.bh or email info@beyonconnect.com
Barter System
FROM TRADITIONAL CURRENCY TO CRYPTOCURRENCY
Let’s be honest – everyone seems to be interested in cryptocurrency right now. You would have been deemed insane a decade ago if you encouraged someone to invest their money in an online currency exchange that is not regulated by the government. If you asked someone two decades ago to shop online, they would be hesitant to pay for something that isn’t physical. It would be a farce. But how and where did it all begin?
Transactions in early cultures were conducted through the exchange of products — a system known as barter. Due to a lack of double coincidence of wants, the use of currency in the form of coins produced from precious metals such as gold and silver began. People were accepting of it because, unlike the barter system, the coins had value. Although gold and silver coins have no other special use, it was known that they could be used to trade.
Traditional Currency
Banks and government centralised currencies came into play as time went on. Instead of carrying heavy metal coins, banks began issuing paper currency that was regulated by the government. The paper note itself has no value because it is not composed of gold or silver. This conventional money is also known as fiat money, and its value is determined by supply and demand, as well as the stability of the issuing government, rather than the value of a product supporting it.
Digital Currency
Today, money is no longer only defined by coins, notes, or commodities; instead, it is defined by entries in a database that contains our whole financial and transaction history. Transactions have become much easier thanks to digital currency. All that is required is a few mouse clicks or screen taps, and money is deducted from one database and transferred to another.
The disadvantage of both traditional and digital currency is that each is
overseen by a government and must be moved through various banks. There are a variety of such currencies.
Cryptocurrency
Cryptocurrency was introduced as a solution to the overflow of databases maintaining digital money. Instead of millions of databases, cryptocurrency uses a single huge database called a ledger to keep track of all transactions. If you’re still perplexed as to why there’s such a fuss, it’s because everyone in the network has a copy of this ledger. When a transaction is completed, it is cross-checked against every ledger, making fraudulent transactions practically impossible.
Apart from being the safest method of payment, it allows you to send money to anyone in the world instantly, without having to worry about conversion rates, interest rates, or spending limits. But will people invest their money in a digital currency that isn’t regulated by any governing body? As a relatively new form of currency, people have mixed feelings about it. The market is quite volatile, and the value fluctuates based on how people feel about it on any given day. And, because there are millions of cryptos out there, one should do their homework before buying, or they risk losing their entire investment.
Crypto Mining Solution Providers
PRODUCT & SERVICES
Crypto Mining Consultancy Crypto Hardward & Software
Delivery, Installation and Test Commissioning of Crypto Mining Equipments After Sales Services At Digital Co. we provide full technical and environmental advice for a successful setup. We install, test and commission, and give full support. We are run by enthusiasts, not shareholders.
We will be here when you need us. We design and build our own mining systems to fit your needs and wants that accommodate your mission, vision, and budget.
We have very strong relationships and a high level of support from the major players in the IT world. We are proud to be one of the few IT companies in Bahrain.
