Zug, Switzerland, October 2, 2024, Chainwire
Poland’s second largest bank, Pekao SA, used the Aleph Zero L1 blockchain to tokenize and preserve internationally renowned Polish artworks.
Bank Pekao, Aleph Zero and Degen House are proud to announce the launch of Archiv3, a project to symbolize and preserve Polish cultural heritage on the Aleph Zero blockchain, with digital reproductions securely stored in the Arctic World Archive (AWA). This initiative combines blockchain technology with a commitment to cultural preservation, ensuring that Poland’s artistic heritage is safeguarded for future generations.
With Archiv3, Bank Pekao becomes the first universal bank to symbolize historical art specifically for preservation purposes. This initiative follows the bank’s previous ‘Unique’ project, marking its role in integrating blockchain technology with traditional banking services. It also highlights the bank’s continued commitment to modernizing its services and expanding the reach of digital assets. Notably, Archiv3 is the first project to tokenize artworks for long-term storage in the Arctic World Archives, known as the “Doomsday Library.” In its press release, Bank Pekao highlighted that the decisive factor in using the Aleph Zero blockchain was not only its speed and security, but also the attention paid to optimizing a low carbon footprint and to its carbon offset program.
“We chose Aleph Zero for its cutting-edge privacy-focused technology, combined with strong experience in cooperation with large institutions,” says Michał Walęczak, Director of the Private Banking Strategy and Development Department at Bank Pekao SA. as low storage costs were also important factors in our decision-making process. The tokenization of art requires modern and flexible technology, unconstrained creativity and out-of-the-box thinking; we were happy to experience these features in cooperation with Aleph Zero.
ARCHIV3 involves the meticulous digitization of masterpieces by iconic Polish artists, such as Jan Matejko, Stanisław Wyspiański, Wojciech Kossak and others, facilitated by Degen House, the bank’s technology partner, which also managed the Aleph Zero integration. The process began by creating high-quality, museum-quality 3D scans using ultra-sensitive cameras, which capture every detail of the original artwork. These digital replicas were then created as NFTs on the eco-friendly Aleph Zero blockchain, which ensures a minimal carbon footprint during the process. The tokenized versions are then archived in the Arctic World Archive, where they are expected to remain secure for at least 1,000 years.
Artworks in the Archiv3 collection span a range of historical periods, primarily featuring 19th-century works and some modern pieces, such as those by contemporary artist Lia Kimura. This initiative aims to preserve these treasures not only for their cultural and historical significance, but also as a resource for future study, conservation and potential virtual exhibitions.
Preserving art for future generations
The Arctic World Archive, located on the remote Svalbard archipelago, serves as a highly secure data vault designed to protect invaluable cultural, historical and scientific information from natural disasters, cyber threats and other risks. Established in 2017, the archive uses advanced storage technology to ensure data longevity without the need for electricity or human intervention, making it one of the safest places in the world to keep records irreplaceable.
The AWA already houses manuscripts from the Vatican Library, documentation from UNESCO and UNICEF, the entire GitHub code repository, as well as literary works by Nobel laureates Olga Tokarczuk and Wisława Szymborska . Bank Pekao is the first financial institution to archive culturally significant works of art at the AWA, while doing the same using decentralized storage, setting a precedent for how blockchain technology can be used to connecting traditional art to new digital solutions.
For any questions regarding this release, please contact josh@serotonin.co
About Aleph Zero
Aleph Zero is a privacy-focused blockchain solutions ecosystem built for speed, data privacy, and ease of development. It achieves efficiencies similar to conventional Web2 systems, meets rigorous standards for data protection via zero-knowledge proofs, and offers a comprehensive toolset for developing on Web3 that ranges from WASM-based Rust to Solidity environments based on EVM. Aleph Zero’s versatility is highlighted by more than 40 use cases in active development, demonstrating its adaptability to various industries and applications. These use cases are part of an engaged community and growing ecosystem of Web3 applications supported by Aleph Zero ecosystem developer programs.
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About Banque Pekao SA
Bank Pekao SA, founded in 1929, is one of the largest financial institutions in the Central and Eastern European region and the second largest universal bank in Poland with assets of PLN 316 billion. With the second largest branch network, Bank Pekao serves 6.9 million customers. As a leading corporate bank in Poland, it serves every second company in Poland. Its status as a universal bank is based on its leading position in the market for private banking, asset management and brokerage activities. Bank Pekao’s diversified business profile is supported by a market-leading balance sheet and risk profile, reflected by the lowest risk costs, strong capital ratios and resilience to macroeconomic conditions (Pekao has proven to be the most resilient bank in Europe, ranking first in the EBA’s 2023 stress tests among 70 banks). Since 1998, Bank Pekao has been listed on the Warsaw Stock Exchange and participates in several local (including WIG 20 and WIG) and international indices (including MSCI EM, Stoxx Europe 600 and FTSE Developed). Pekao is one of the highest dividend paying listed companies in Poland over the last 10 years, with a total of approx. 20 billion PLN over a decade.
About Maison Degen
Degen House is a comprehensive blockchain solutions provider with a proven track record of collaborations between leading CEE banks and leading global blockchain ecosystems. The company offers comprehensive end-to-end solutions, from strategic consulting and product development to targeted marketing and sales.
Contact
Public relations manager
Josh Adams
Aleph Zero
josh@serotonin.co
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