StegX, the One-Stop-Shop ecosystem for institutional real estate investments, joined a delegation of 13 #German#startups led by Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Action to represent #Germany at this year's Web Summit Rio alongside German officials and other key representatives at one of the world's top tech events from April 15th to April 18th, 2024. With numerous opportunities to expand our network at a variety of side-events, we had the chance to truly immerse ourselves in the local digital assets community and forge new connections.
One of the most discussed topics was #DREX, the Brazilian central bank's own digital currency (#CBDC) scheduled for launch in 2024. As a digital currency, it will leverage distributed ledger technology (#DLT) to settle wholesale interbank transactions, while retail access will be facilitated through tokenized bank deposits. With the project primarily aimed at enhancing access to financial services in the country, this initiative represents just one potential driver of future advances in the local digital assets space. It's not only Brazil that is witnessing rapid market developments; other countries in South America are also experiencing significant progress. We're still processing all the fascinating discussions and new connections we've made, and above all, we're grateful for this incredible experience.
Thanks to the great preparation and organization, we had eventful days with the delegation during which we were, among other things, able to engage with the national development bank to learn about their funding programs for innovation and digitalization.
Additionally, we also participated in some exciting panels at the summit and in the whole city of #Rio over all three days and connecting with important stakeholders in the Brazilian start-up ecosystem.
But that's far from all. During our time at the summit, we learned a lot about the Brazilian economic landscape, the political climate, and the local ecosystem from a variety of market participants. We noticed significant differences in the digital assets space between the European market and Brazil, as both markets approach the topic in completely different ways due to structural disparities.This is why we were most excited about the change in perspectives that we were able to obtain, and we truly felt the immense potential of the Brazilian market. Overall, we were highly impressed by the pace at which the market is developing, especially considering that it is still in its early stages and is definitely just getting started in 2024.
Once again, we want to thank the Digital Hub Initiative and the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Action for this incredible opportunity and for organizing the trip and accommodations so well. It was truly a privilege to be part of this journey and to showcase German Fintech innovation on a global stage.
