The Dubai Land Department (DLD) has become “the world’s first government entity” to use Blockchain technology to record all real estate transactions.

As part of its ‘Dubai Blockchain Strategy’, the department has created a Blockchain real estate platform –first-of-its-kind in the global real estate sector – using a smart and secure database.

The platform records all real estate contracts, including lease registrations, and links them with the Dubai Electricity & Water Authority (DEWA), the telecommunications system, and various property related bills, DLD said in a statement.

The platform allows tenants to make payments electronically and the entire process can be completed electronically within a few minutes at any time and from anywhere in the world, removing the need to visit any government entity, DLD said.

The technology will allow DLD to create a Blockchain database for all Dubai properties. Investors living in Dubai and around the world will be able to verify property data that is backed by timestamp signatures, enhancing the accuracy of data, the credibility of investment transactions, and the transparency and clarity of the market.

The Blockchain platform is being developed by DLD’s division Emirates Real Estate Solutions in collaboration with a number of external partners.

Dubai introduced the Dubai Blockchain Strategy in October 2016 to make Dubai the first government in the world to apply all transactions through Blockchain by 2020.