Many blockchain projects in the Netherlands have been researched and deployed by Zestif, a startup founded by Crys Nguyen (born in 1992).
About seven years ago, in the Netherlands as well as in the world , the blockchain market was still quite in its infancy.
The Dutch government made a rather bold decision in 2016: Appointing a dedicated subcommittee to set up a blockchain technology research and pilot program.
Shortly after, the Dutch government launched a blockchain competition for government agencies. Ministries and agencies submitted orders and participating startups had to find solutions to the challenges presented by these orders.
And then there were 35 pilot projects using blockchain technology successfully researched and developed by businesses and startups. Among them was the Project of Applying Blockchain Technology to Managing Medical Record Information in Hospitals, implemented by Zestif and partners in coordination with the Dutch Ministry of Health .
This project was honored in 2017 as “Best Healthcare IT Project of the Year”. It is also the first blockchain project to be legally certified by the Dutch Government.
It should be noted that in 2016-2017, when mentioning blockchain, people often associated it with virtual currency, scams, and "chicken herding" projects.
However, Crys Nguyen and his colleagues overcame prejudice with a civilized way of thinking: “Technology is just a tool, but how we use it is important. Like a knife, in the hands of a chef it is different from in the hands of a robber.”
Fortunately, the Dutch Government has been early on to support blockchain technology projects of startups like Zestif, not only creating orders but also providing certain financial and sponsorship funds to startups to encourage them to research this new technology, while also popularizing it so that all businesses in the Netherlands can start learning about and believing in blockchain.
“The government invested in our startup like planting seeds and watering young trees, and the healthy trees will grow on their own. The startup has money and a sandbox environment with real customers and orders, so there is no fear of mistakes or errors. This way of behaving is extremely important for new technology,” the founder of Zestif recalls.
After a successful pilot, Zestif's project has been replicated in a larger solution of a state agency, which is the Blockchain Platform for storing medical records, helping each patient to self-manage their medical records, and at the same time, can share data with hospitals in an absolutely secure manner, protecting privacy and avoiding the risk of personal information disclosure.
Zestif has worked with relevant agencies to integrate its technology solution into hospital systems and e-government databases; implementing it regionally and hospital-by-hospital. In the Netherlands, technology implementation is often “top-down”. Large enterprises and hospitals will use it first, see if it is okay, then let other hospitals use it.
“When applying blockchain technology, people will be in control of their medical records, immediately knowing who or which hospital accessed them on what day/time, for what purpose, for how long…”, said Crys Nguyen.
In 2017, not many people knew about Zestif and Crys Nguyen, a 9x Vietnamese who had spent a long time studying in the Netherlands, with a major at the University of Amsterdam in Arts and Technology, and a minor in Entrepreneurship.
The young man born in 1992 has a special passion for exploring new technologies. From the trend of making mobile apps in 2012, to the booming trend of e-commerce in 2014, then blockchain, AI... he has tried every new technology.
His “fate” with blockchain began when he worked on a fintech application for a company in the Netherlands. His friends gave him the nickname “Crypto Crys” when he invested all his money in cryptocurrency (Bitcoin) to gain practical experience, hone his skills, and have more funds to invest in blockchain research.
The unique characteristics of those working in the blockchain industry, as summarized by Crys Nguyen from many years of personal experience, are “people who are not afraid of risks, always like new things, always look at new technology with a positive perspective, always see opportunities in new technology and are ready to be pioneers; when doing repetitive things, it is no longer interesting”.
“Researching and developing new technology is of course much harder than developing existing technology. Not every project is successful. You have to try. Especially the first projects. Many times our programmers have to sit and search Google but cannot find the information they want because no one has done it before. I myself have had many failed projects (laughs). But I always look forward. I always believe that there are many new opportunities in the future. When we technology people look at new technologies like AI, ChatGPT... we always look at them in a positive way, just try them first and see later, without thinking about the risks and then giving up,” Crys Nguyen shared.
In the Netherlands, all sectors and fields such as insurance, healthcare, etc. have been digitized, integrating data into e-government. New technology pilot projects are deployed independently in a sandbox environment. After a successful pilot, they move to the replication phase and are then integrated into the government's existing databases and systems with quite strict specific standards.
In addition to the Blockchain Technology Application Project in Hospital Medical Record Information Management as mentioned at the beginning of the article, Zestif also participates in a number of other blockchain application projects for the Government as well as Dutch organizations and businesses.
One can mention the Blockchain Technology Application Project to manage personal information of each citizen, coordinated with the Dutch Justice Department and the Amsterdam government. This project is similar to VNeID in Vietnam. However, in Europe, there are GDPR regulations on personal data protection, in the direction that the government is only the provider of personal information, while the people are the absolute owners of that information. When using public services or jobs that require personal information, people can give relevant agencies access to their information for a certain period of time, then turn off access, avoiding leaks and theft of personal data.
Or blockchain applications support traceability in agricultural production. For example, palm oil goes through many processing stages from farmers, traders, factories, etc. before reaching consumers in a variety of products (food, cosmetics, etc.). The stages can be processed in many different countries. Applying blockchain technology will help consumers simply scan the product barcode to know the ingredients, origin of the product, and whether it meets sustainable development requirements or not.
Or apply blockchain to manage the supply chain. The blockchain platform allows all parties involved in the supply chain to enter and track information and data related to plastic boxes, crates, shelves, etc., items that are easily lost. This reduces damage to businesses and helps protect the environment.
Or apply blockchain to create a “construction passport”, storing full information about the components and materials of the construction such as each steel core of the building, each power line or any equipment or component in the building. Each component and device has a code, barcode, clearly showing the date of manufacture, place of manufacture…, thereby knowing exactly when to replace, maintain, and increase the life of the construction.
Recently, in 2022, Zestif collaborated with a securities company in the Netherlands to launch a platform that helps businesses issue bonds in the form of tokens on the blockchain, bringing transparency and trust to investors because the data on the blockchain is 100% authenticated and cannot be forged.
(Article 2: Blockchain startup's dream of recreating "Dutch success" in Vietnam)
Article: Dawn
Design: Vu Minh Hoa
Vietnamnet.vn
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