Everex Announces Collaboration With Lao Development Bank

Singapore-based blockchain services provider EVX Holdings, Pte. Ltd., operating as Everex, has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Lao Development Bank (LDB) to develop and implement blockchain technology for cross-border payments and trade finance.

At a ceremony attended by senior executives of LDB and Everex, Phoutsala Omdalah, deputy managing director of LDB, said in his opening statement:

According to Tim Scheffmann, regional managing director of Everex, adopting blockchain will not only benefit Laos and also its neighboring countries.

“Due to its strategic position, Laos is well suited for digital border trade transactions in combination with

migrant workers’ remittances and financial inclusion,” Scheffmann noted. “Blockchain technology can reduce transaction costs, increase security and transaction speed. This will increase the nation’s GDP and trade volumes.”

The agreement with LDB comes at a time when Everex is aggressively expanding across the Southeast Asian region. In April, the startup announced that it had received the green light from the Thai central bank to deploy an Ethereum-powered cross-border remittance platform to establish “payment connectivity” between Thailand and Myanmar.

The initiative, dubbed the Krungthai and Shwe Remittance project, involves Krungthai Bank (KTB) from Thailand and Shwe Bank from Myanmar.

Everex, which specializes in blockchain-powered payment solutions including cross-border money transfers, merchant payments and currency exchange, worked alongside KTB and Shwe Bank to develop a service that allows customers to transfer money anywhere in Thailand, at anytime with competitive foreign exchange rates via the KTB mobile banking application.