From real estate to identity standards, momentum rebuilds in Canada’s blockchain industry

When Paul Czan goes to work, he appreciates having a single app that contains all the information he needs to help his clients buy and sell property. With technology streamlining the process, it frees him up to focus on aspects of his job that require an in-person presence.

“Technology is definitely making our industry better overall,” says Mr. Czan, an Ottawa realtor and president of the Ottawa Real Estate Board.

Every morning, he opens REALM, a multiple listing service platform for realtors developed in 2021 by the Toronto and Region Real Estate Board (TRREB) and its subsidiary, PropTx. It has since been adopted by almost every real-estate board in Ontario.

In 2023, PropTx announced plans to integrate blockchain into the platform.

For the uninitiated, a blockchain is an unchangeable, decentralized digital ledger that securely stores records across a network of computers. Information is stored in blocks that are linked together in a chain. Instead of relying on a central authority, like when your bank confirms someone deposited money into your account, the technology directly answers the question: “Can I trust that this exchange took place?”

Known for its use in cryptocurrency, it was also heralded as technology that other industries could leverage.

TRREB CEO John DiMichele said in a statement that its blockchain solution will provide a secure, more streamlined process for everyone involved in a real estate transaction, with the potential for reducing fraud.

Across Canada, work on blockchain projects outside of cryptocurrency have had lower profiles than they did five years ago. Before the pandemic, early adopters such as Walmart Canada announced plans to use blockchain to improve its invoice and payment process, and Canada’s biggest banks all launched blockchain initiatives.

Patrick Mandic, CEO of Mavennet, an IT services company in Toronto, says that momentum slowed because using blockchain in the supply chain requires a level of standardization for which most companies were not prepared.

“We had the right answer to the wrong question,” Mr. Mandic says. “We needed to do a lot of legwork to align different organizations on the same standard to exchange information and know that everyone is talking about the same thing before we worry about proving one specific action.”

He also says the foundational work led to other products that many people don’t link to blockchain, such as decentralized identity standards and verifiable credentials. They are essential to taking advantage of blockchain.

“It starts slow, but once you get to the tipping point, that’s when the value takes off in a really big way – that’s what we saw with the introduction of the internet,” Mr. Mandic says. “We’re going to get to places we couldn’t even imagine five years ago.”

Blockchain, almost by default, has become synonymous with cryptocurrency. Koleya Karringten, executive director of the Canadian Blockchain Consortium, says that has contributed to a lack of understanding and perceived risk. “The technology as a whole is 99 per cent extremely beneficial.”

Outside of the financial sector, she says blockchain is “still a lot of conversation and discussions,” but compelling uses for blockchain are generating a lot of interest in Canada, including smart contract signatures, land-title transfers, and identity verification.

“It’s an agnostic technology that can really help Canadians in a lot of ways,” Ms. Karringten says.

She adds the industry needs more support and clarity from governments to thrive in Canada.