The questions below relate to the Application process.
For questions related to the European Blockchain Sandbox in general, click here.
For any questions relating to the applications process, please email (info@blockchain-sandbox.eu). The answers will be published below for all applicants to benefit from.
The potential applicant is a company based outside the EEA with EEA-based subsidiaries, currently deploying blockchain solutions in the EEA. Is it possible for companies based outside the EEA with subsidiaries in the EEA to submit an eligible application for the European Blockchain Sandbox through an EEA-based subsidiary or via the parent company outside the EU/EEA?
The applicant must be established in the EEA and have been a legal person for at least six (6) months either as: i) a legal entity registered in the professional or commercial register according to the rules of the EEA Member State where it is established, or ii) a public body established in one of the EEA Member States. If an application is submitted on behalf of a consortium, then the applicant will make sure to have the permission to submit the application on the behalf of all parties. All consortium parties must be either legal persons or public bodies. The leader of the Blockchain use case could be the applicant or one of the other consortium partners, as long as the leader is a legal entity that is located in the EEA.
Therefore, non-EEA based companies can be part of a consortium that submits an application as long as the applicant (and the use case leader if applicable) are located in the EEA and fulfill the above conditions.
What is the maximum size limit of the application form and the annexes?
10MB.
Who has to sign the self-declaration on honour and the application form?
The application form must be signed by a person authorized to enter into legally binding commitments on behalf of the applicant (and its consortium members if applicable). If the application is submitted on behalf of a consortium, then the applicant will make sure to have the permission to submit the application on behalf of all consortium members.
A self-declaration on honour has to be submitted by the applicant together with the application in accordance with the prescribed form which is accessible through the application form and on the website. If the application is submitted as a consortium, a self-declaration on honour, unconditionally completed and signed by an authorized representative, should be submitted for each consortium member.
Is the contact person mentioned in the application form the only person who can take part in the sandbox activities?
The contact person mentioned in A.6 of the application form is the appointed contact for communication regarding the application process and the sandbox if selected. However, during the sandbox operation more persons can take part in the sandbox activities (in principle up to five (5) persons per participant.
Is it possible to submit an application for more than one use-case for instance if the application is submitted on behalf of a consortium with individual consortium members deploying their use-case?
Each applicant will be allowed to submit one application for a specific use case. The application form needs to be completed for this use case and the eligibility of the application will be assessed on the basis thereof. Reference is made to the information requested in part B of the application form. However, the contributions by consortium partners - which could consist of experience with similar use cases - may be taken into account for the evaluation of the use case on the basis of the award criteria such as the reference with the EU's wider Policy Priorities. Reference is made to question A.11 of the application form.
How will business confidential information in the blockchain use case that is shared as part of the application process or in the course of the operation of the sandbox be protected?
All business confidential information, contained in the applications and in the course of the operation of the sandbox will be kept confidential in accordance with Clause 10 of the Application Terms and clause 12 of the Sandbox protocol. The application forms, selection process outcomes and other associated data will be destroyed after the end of the Sandbox operations of each cohort; wait-listed applications that participate in the next cohort will be retained until the end of the Sandbox operations for the next cohort (Clause 8 of the Application Terms).
Information that is shared during the Sandbox operation will be kept confidential in accordance with clause 12 of the Sandbox protocol. This information will be no longer accessible at the end of the Sandbox operations of that cohort and all data on the secure platform will be archived offline in accordance with the bar rules at the end of the sandbox operations of that cohort (Clause 14 of the Sandbox protocol). Confidential information will not be published and will not be disclosed in the best practices report (Clause 10 of the Sandbox protocol and paragraph 5 of the Annex to the Sandbox protocol).
Is it correct to assume that the applicant will not be bound to consent to the use of confidential information, trade secrets and IP rights that is shared in the application form or during the sandbox operations by other parties (including the consortium, the European Commission and the participating regulators)?
Yes this is correct. However, on the basis of Clause 9 of the Application Terms and Clause 11 of the Sandbox protocol, the applicant will not object to further use of information that is not identified as business confidential by the participants in the sandbox (Clause 12 of the Sandbox protocol) and that is published in accordance with the Application Terms and the Sandbox protocol (see the answer to question 6, Clause 10 Application Terms and Clause 10 Sandbox protocol).
How will information that is contributed by the regulators in the course of the operation of the sandbox be protected?
Information that is contributed by the regulators is governed by the same confidentiality rules as information that is contributed by the use cases participating in the sandbox. Information exchanged in the Sandbox is only be accessible to the individual persons who participate in the Sandbox on behalf of the use case owners and the regulators and this information may not be copied or disseminated outside this group unless otherwise permitted under the Sandbox protocol. Bird & Bird will participate in the Sandbox on an as needed basis and Bird & Bird lawyers are governed by the professional rules on integrity and client confidentiality in the applicable bar rules.
If the application is submitted as a consortium, is there a requirement that the consortium should be structured as a legal entity?
No this is not a requirement. If an application is submitted on behalf of a consortium, then the applicant will make sure to have the permission to submit the application on the behalf of all parties. However the consortium does not need to be structured as a legal entity. All consortium parties must be either legal persons or public bodies. The leader of the Blockchain use case could be the applicant or one of the other consortium partners, as long as the leader is a legal entity that is located in the EEA.
If the application is submitted as a consortium, must there be a legal representative of this consortium?
The application form must be signed by a person authorized to enter into legally binding commitments on behalf of the applicant and its consortium members using the application form which is hosted on EUSurvey (hyperlink to Application Form). If the application is submitted on behalf of a consortium, then the applicant will make sure to have the permission to submit the application on behalf of all consortium members.
A self-declaration on honour has to be submitted by the applicant together with the application in accordance with the prescribed form which is accessible through the application form and on the website. If the application is submitted as a consortium, a self-declaration on honour, unconditionally completed and signed by an authorized representative, should be submitted for each consortium member.
How long will the selection process last?
It is expected that the selection process for the 1st cohort will be completed in Q2 of 2023.
Could you please explain how the automatic qualification to participate, of European Blockchain Services Infrastructure (EBSI) use cases, works in practice?
Up to 20 private and public sector use cases can participate in the Sandbox. There are separate lots for i) microenterprises, ii) small enterprises, iii) medium-sized or larger enterprises and iv) public entities. The qualification of the enterprises depends on staff headcount and turnover or balance sheet based on EU Commission recommendation 2003/361. At least 5 use cases from each category that meet the eligibility test will participate in the Sandbox if sufficient candidates are in the final shortlist. EBSI use cases that are proposed by the European Blockchain Partnership (EBP) are automatically qualified to participate in the sandbox if they submit an application before the end of the application term and fall within the category of public entities (Article 4.2 Application Terms).
The questions in section E (E.1-E.8) refer to the link to novel regulatory issues across industry sectors. In question E.5, does the explanation need to cover all 1-3 applications selected in question E.1?
In question E.5 a short explanation regarding each of the innovative applications of the blockchain use case selected in questions E.1-E.4 can be given and, if applicable, the effects/advantages of the blockchain use case compared to traditional options/solutions can be described. It is also possible to refer to attachments uploaded under question D.7.
To what extent is the geographic element considered in the selection criteria? Does it only feature as "Geographic Uniqueness", and thus as tiebreaker?
The geographic element is also part of the eligibility criteria (Questions A.7 – A.9 and Questions A.17 – A.19). In addition information about the geographic element could be given, if applicable, in for instance Parts E (link with novel regulatory issues across industry sectors) and F (Relevance with the EU’s wider Policy Priorities).
In the event of a tie-breaker between two or more use-cases, how do the tiebreaker criteria work?
There are two tie-breakers: “Geographical uniqueness” and “Regulator support”, each with their own test.
Geographical uniqueness (Part G application form) is applied as a tie-breaker if a use case has a score that qualifies for selection and comes from one of the EEA regions that is underrepresented or not represented at all in the final shortlist of candidates. In that case the selection team, at its discretion, may select a use case from such a region that meets the eligibility criteria.
The existence of regulator support (part H application form) is applied as a tie-breaker if use cases (within a lot) that are short-listed have similar scores that qualify for selection. A similar score is a score with 1 point or less difference, out of a total of 100 points (explanatory note in H.1 of the application form).
Is it necessary for the blockchain/DLT use case to already have achieved applicable regulatory approval in order to be considered eligible to apply for the European Blockchain Sandbox?
This is not a requirement as long as the use case meets the eligibility criterion of a validated proof of concept.
What is the desired level of technical terminology (and use of acronyms) in the description of the use-case?
Although the selection team consists of blockchain experts it is recommended to keep the language as simple and clear as possible and understandable for the purpose of a regulatory sandbox.
Are the regulatory sandbox meetings taking place remotely, offline or in a hybrid format?
The meetings will be carried out remotely/virtually.
Our project consists of multiple components in various TRLs. We can provide evidence for the individual building blocks, but not for the whole, how should we proceed? Because in this sense, the project has not started yet, so we have no date of validation (D.1), but all the components are highly advanced and we want to try to put them to work together to produce a new solution.
The use case for which the application is submitted needs to meet the eligibility test of a validated proof of concept (question D.1) as a whole. Information about additional applications in various TRL’s can be given as additional context/clarification in Part B of the application form.