Airtel buys tactical stake in a blockchain start-up

Telecom major Bharti Airtel on Thursday announced that it has acquired a strategic stake in Aqilliz, a ‘Blockchain as a Service Company.’

Airtel aims to deploy Aqilliz’s blockchain technologies at scale across its fast growing adtech (Airtel Ads), digital entertainment (Wynk Music and Airtel Xstream) and digital marketplace (Airtel Thanks App) offerings.

“Bharti Airtel…has acquired a strategic stake in Aqilliz – a Blockchain as a Service Company under the Airtel Startup Accelerator Program, subject to applicable statutory approvals,” the company said in a statement.

It did not divulge financial details of the deal.

Singapore-based Aqilliz has developed a patented hybrid blockchain platform, Atom, that integrates differential privacy and federated learning on a distributed digital ledger.

This allows brands to create secure and consent-based solutions to engage with customers in a rapidly-evolving digital economy that’s becoming increasingly decentralised, the statement added.