With the assistance of an $800,000 grant from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, Canadian authentication innovator, SecureKey will develop a digital identity network using blockchain technology. SecureKey will work with the Digital ID and Authentication Council of Canada (DIACC) to build the network.

Calling the funding “essential” in making a national digital identity ecosystem a reality, SecureKey Chief Identity Officer Andre Boysen emphasized “putting customers first” in a system that “increases both their digital security and privacy.” DIACC president Joni Brennan said investment in digital ID and authentication technology was “critical to enabling Canadian citizens, businesses and governments to capture the full potential of the global economy.”

The digital identity network will enable individuals, organizations, and institutions to connect using trusted log-in credentials. Blockchain technology minimizes the amount of data transferred between parties, providing a “secure blinding infrastructure” Boysen says was key to attracting DHS’s attention. “When paired with the appropriate resources,” he wrote in December at the SecureKey blog, “blockchain has the power to improve the state of digital identity altogether – an opportunity we have recognized and invested in.”

Founded in 2008 and headquartered in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, SecureKey demonstrated its technology at FinovateFall 2012. The company announced this week that Affinity Credit Union had become a “trusted sign-in” partner for its SecureKey Concierge program. A member of H2 Ventures and KPMG’s Fintech 100 for 2016, SecureKey has raised $89 million in funding and includes BlueSky Capital, Intel Capital, and Rogers Venture Partners among its many investors.