Today there is considerable interest in the tokenization of assets within blockchain-based networks. Aside from the current lack of interoperability among these blockchain networks there is also the challenge of the interoperability of these digital assets across different legal jurisdictions around the world. In this paper, we discuss some of the challenges in automating the processing of tokenized assets.  A primary concern in that context is the clear definition of legal aspects related to the issuance and the terms of use of digital assets.

Securely transferring tokenised assets between largely non-interoperable blockchain networks is a great challenge to take on. Implementations must coordinate transactions on multiple blockchain networks which have inherently different characteristics and functionality. Moreover, implementations must coordinate transactions in strict order, in an atomic, synchronised way so that owners do not risk their assets becoming lost, while also mitigating the age-old problem of “avoiding double spend”. Several protocols for cross-network asset transfer, i.e. the bridging of assets, exist, and several production bridge implementations exist. However, frequent high-profile security breaches have arguably given bridges a bad reputation. Therefore, there is a clear need for standardised bridge protocols to re-establish trust. One initiative for standardising cross-network bridges is the Secure Asset Transfer Protocol (SATP) developed by the Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF). This protocol establishes four distinctive phases for the asset transfer process, driven by a standardised messaging cycle between specialised bridge orchestration applications, known as gateways. In this paper, we demonstrate a reference framework with functions needed to implement SATP. We describe our implementation of this reference framework, why SATP is unique and why SATP is likely to be an important contribution to powering future bridges.

Entrepreneurs, enterprises, and governments are using distributed ledger technology (DLT) as a component of complex information systems, and therefore interoperability capabilities are required. Interoperating DLTs enables network effects, synergies and, similarly to the rise of the Internet, it unlocks the full potential of the technology. However, due to the novelty of the area, interoperability mechanisms (IM) are still not well understood, as interoperability is studied in silos. Consequently, choosing the proper IM for a use case is challenging. Our paper has three contributions: first, we systematically study the research area of DLT interoperability by dissecting and analyzing previous work. We study the logical separation of interoperability layers, how a DLT can connect to others (connection mode), the object of interoperation (interoperation mode), and propose a new categorization for IMs. Second, we propose the first interoperability assessment for DLTs that systematically evaluates the interoperability degree of an IM. This framework allows comparing the potentiality, compatibility, and performance among solutions. Finally, we propose two decision models to assist in choosing an IM, considering different requirements. The first decision model assists in choosing the infrastructure of an IM, while the second decision model assists in choosing its functionality.

A Digital Data Hub provides Data Accounts wherein persons may store data that are collected in their interaction with organizations. The hub is extensible by contributed Data Apps that gather and process data and conduct business transactions. They may act as Agents assisting the users in their daily lives. Private-banking-grade Privacy and Security ensure that the power of this data collection cannot be misused. Schema standardization is key to ensure privacy and security.

It is time for Australia to contemplate the development for a digital marketplace data & insights that permit relevant information to be obtained by relevant parties in a timely manner, all the time preserving the privacy of individual data-subjects. The Data Exchange is a technological representation and implementation of the data & insights marketplace. The data traders entities supply and purchase data & insights from the marketplace platform. The data trader entities can be organizations, collectives, data cooperatives or individuals. The data trader parties obtain authorized access to data objects in a protected manner, where data objects include: raw data, references to data, collated data and reports, metadata and insights.

The emergence of blockchain interoperability is reducing the risk of investing in blockchain by avoiding vendor lock-in, leveraging interoperation, and providing migration capabilities. However, to fully unlock the internet of blockchains, it is necessary to provide enterprise interoperability mechanisms that allow service providers to comply with different regulations, e.g., data privacy regulations. Each blockchain can be reached via a gateway, allowing to interconnect value, to provide different services, and to enable self-sovereignty. To realize this vision, we propose Hermes, a fault-tolerant middleware that connects blockchain networks and is based on the Open Digital Asset Protocol (ODAP). Hermes is crash fault-tolerant by allying a new protocol, ODAP-2PC, with a log storage API that can leverage blockchain to secure logs, providing them transparency, auditability, availability, and non-repudiation. We introduce a use case benefiting from Hermes, digital cross-jurisdiction promissory notes. We show that cross-chain transactions can be achieved securely with Hermes, given that gateways are complying with legal frameworks.