Federal Councillor Beat Jans hosting the OpenWallet Forum High Level Panel Meeting in Davos
Today, Federal Councillor Beat Jans hosted the OpenWallet Forum High-Level Panel Meeting in Davos. The event was organised jointly with the International Telecommunication Union and the OpenWallet Foundation.
Welcome Remarks by Federal Councillor Beat Jans
His Excellency Solly Malatsi
His Excellency Dariusz Standerski
His Excellency Guilherme de Aguiar Patriota
Secretary General Doreen Bogdan-Martin
Federal Chancellor Victor Rossi
Representatives of Governments, International Organizations, Standardization Bodies, Hardware-Manufacturers, Software Developers, Academia and Non-Governmental Organization’s
Ladies and Gentlemen,
Welcome to the House of Switzerland and the first OpenWallet Forum High-Level Panel Meeting. It is my honor to host you today for this significant moment. I dare to say, the lineup of participants is historic, representing key figures shaping global communications infrastructure.
The cartographers of tomorrow don’t sketch landscapes; they design the architecture of trust.
This meeting is not just about improving systems but about redrawing the contours of identity and information for a digital age.
Identity is central to human existence. Digital transformation opens new opportunities while also presenting challenges in secure, privacy-preserving, and user-friendly data exchange globally. While technical issues abound, we must also address critical political questions.
Identity is the key to autonomy; whoever holds it, holds the lock to your future.
I would like to underscore our responsibility: building a system where digital identity is an extension of personal sovereignty, not a tool of control.
Currently, Switzerland does not issue an electronic identity. A prior attempt four years ago failed in a referendum, due to privacy concerns and the proposal to delegate issuance to private companies. A new law, now passed by Parliament, proposes federal issuance of the e-ID as a verifiable credential bound to the holder’s smartphone. Inspired by self-sovereign identity principles, the system will allow public authorities and private entities to verify and issue credentials using a shared trust infrastructure.
The new e-ID Act has entered the optional referendum phase. Some political actors aim to collect 50,000 signatures within 100 days to trigger another popular vote. Unless our citizens do not decide otherwise, the e-ID and its trust infrastructure will be available in 2026.
Switzerland’s participation in the OpenWallet initiative reflects its commitment to global collaboration. As a Founding Member of the Governmental Advisory Committee of the OpenWallet Foundation and a supporter of the OpenWallet Forum within the International Telecommunication Union, Switzerland embraces the initiative’s goals.
Switzerland’s motivation for engagement is threefold:
1. Global Connectivity: As a highly globalized society, Switzerland relies on seamless data exchange and values technological advancements.
2. Collaboration for Interoperability: Interoperable digital infrastructure requires cooperation across governments, international organizations, standardization bodies, academia, and other stakeholders.
3. Democratic Digital Public Infrastructure: Wallets for state-issued credentials must adhere to democracy, the rule of law, and human rights principles. Therefore, Switzerland actively advocates for:
· privacy-preserving crypto-processors as open hardware in all smartphones.
· Open-source solutions, as exemplified by the e-ID Act’s commitment to publishing all source code.
· Multilateral and multistakeholder approaches for legitimacy and sustainability.
As a country with a long tradition of fostering global dialogue, Switzerland views trust as its most valuable contributions to the international digital ecosystem.
I extend my gratitude to our partners, especially the International Telecommunication Union and the OpenWallet Foundation, for their collaboration in organizing this event.
I thank you all for your engagement and hope this meeting sparks ideas, ignites collaboration, and leads to action.
A better digital future begins not with technology but with the shared will to build it together.
Thank you for your attention.
Panel 1 - The challenges for interoperability for digital wallets and the need for multistakeholder collaboration
· H.E Solly Malatsi, Minister of Communications and Digital Technologies, South Africa
· H.E Amb Guilherme de Aguiar Patriota, Brazil Mission to WTO
· Edouard Bugnion, Vice-President for Innovation and Impact, EPFL
· Bill Ren, Chief Open-Source Liaison Officer, Huawei
· Christina Hirsch, Head Digital Trust, Swisscom
· Wonseok Baek, Head of Samsung Wallet Global BD/Product, Samsung Electronics
· Alain Labrique, Director, Department of Digital Health and Innovation (DHI) Science Division (SCI), World Health Organization
Panel 2 - The importance of international standards for the interoperability of digital wallets
· Sergio Mujica, Secretary General, ISO
· Viky Manaila, President, CSC Cloud Signature Consortium
· Arman Aygen, Director of Technology, EMVCo
· Philippe Metzger, Secretary-General & CEO, IEC
· Bilel Jamoussi, Deputy Director, Telecommunication Standardization Bureau, ITU
· Gail Hodges, Executive Director, OpenID Foundation
· Seth Dobbs, CEO, W3C
· Mike Milinkovich, Executive Director, Eclipse Foundation
