ShareRing Brings Its Blockchain Identity Solution to Rakuten Travel Bookers

Blockchain platform ShareRing is integrating with Rakuten Travel Xchange, an online travel booking subsidiary of Japanese e-commerce giant Rakuten.

The integration will mean Rakuten Travel Xchange customers can opt to use ShareRing’s self-sovereign identity app to access bookings at over 600,000 hotels and 200,000 rentals, according to an announcement Wednesday

ShareRing said the blockchain-powered product allows passports and other travel documents, bank cards, accommodation, flights and vehicle information to be securely stored in one location, being accessible exclusively by the user.

Rakuten Travel Xchange customers will further have the option to pay for bookings with cryptocurrencies, the firm said.

ShareRing said the app could limit identity and financial theft, reduce scams and fraud, and allow users to avoid long check-in queues through its “instant” verification of identities.

“We’re excited to be partnering with one of the world’s largest travel providers that reaches more than one billion members around the world,” said ShareRing CEO Tim Bos. “We are looking forward to offering our users access to the platform with overdue security and convenience upgrades for the industry.”

The integration is slated to go live in the next two weeks, a spokesperson for ShareRing told CoinDesk.

ShareRing’s self-sovereign identity model, also offered as a white-label solution, was recently picked to join China’s state-backed blockchain initiative dubbed the Blockchain Service Network.