Building Universal Trust: How GLEIF's Identity Standards Shape a Connected Blockchain Ecosystem

At Chainlink’s recent SmartCon conference, industry leaders gathered in New York to address one of Web3’s most pressing challenges: achieving seamless interconnectivity across fragmented blockchain networks. The discussions revealed that GLEIF—the Global Legal Entity Identifier Foundation—is emerging as a critical player in establishing the universal standards needed to bridge traditional finance and decentralized systems.

The Fragmentation Challenge and Why Identity Matters

The blockchain ecosystem faces a fundamental problem: traditional financial institutions struggle to enter Web3 partly because different blockchain networks operate with incompatible communication and data standards. Swift’s Jack Pouderoyen, Head of Digital Asset Strategy, explained that this fragmentation represents the primary barrier for legacy financial systems attempting to leverage blockchain infrastructure while maintaining their existing operational frameworks. The solution requires not just technical compatibility but a universal identity standard that all participants can trust.

This is where identity verification emerges as foundational. Rather than multiple isolated identity systems, the industry needs a single, globally recognized standard—one that can work across different blockchains and provide the institutional trust that traditional finance demands.

GLEIF’s vLEI: The Universal Identifier for Organizational Trust

GLEIF has developed a solution directly addressing this need: the Verifiable Legal Entity Identity (vLEI) system. Unlike proprietary identity solutions, vLEI provides a neutral, internationally recognized standard for organizational identity verification across any blockchain network. According to Christoph Schneider, Technical Lead at Glyph, vLEI is positioned to become “the anchor of trust in a multi-chain interconnected ecosystem.”

This system goes beyond simple credential verification. By establishing GLEIF as the authoritative source for organizational identity, vLEI enables compliance at scale and provides the assurance that traditional financial institutions require to operate confidently in the digital economy.

Coordinated Global Standardization Efforts

The standardization movement extends beyond identity. Swift is expanding ISO 20022—an existing international communications standard—into blockchain data fields, allowing financial institutions to maintain operational consistency while accessing on-chain markets. Simultaneously, the Global Blockchain Business Council (GBBC) is championing cross-border standards harmonization through its participation in the ISO TC307 Blockchain Committee, recognizing that regulatory alignment and market standards must evolve together.

Sandra Ro, CEO of GBBC, emphasized that standardization is not merely a compliance checkbox but rather the key driver for sustainable industry growth. When different jurisdictions and market participants adopt unified standards, the entire ecosystem becomes more efficient and trustworthy.

Proving Interoperability Works: Real-World Integration

Theory becomes practice through proof of concept. Chainlink and GLEIF have jointly launched integration testing of vLEI with Chainlink’s Cross-Chain Interoperability Protocol (CCID), demonstrating that universal identity standards can function seamlessly across distributed networks. This collaborative validation is crucial—it shows that GLEIF’s approach isn’t theoretical but operationally feasible.

Looking ahead, Swift plans to deploy a prototype digital asset standardization platform within the coming year, while GBBC intends to expand standardization initiatives into additional regulatory and market-level applications.

The Path Forward: Standards and Innovation as Parallel Tracks

Conference participants reached consensus on one critical point: standardization and innovation must advance together rather than compete. Rather than waiting for perfect standards before experimenting, the industry should establish foundational standards—like GLEIF’s identity framework—while allowing room for innovation and iterative improvement through real-world testing and verification.

This balanced approach recognizes that GLEIF and other standardization bodies provide the necessary infrastructure for trust, compliance, and interoperability, while developers and institutions continue to build novel applications and services on top of this stable foundation. The result is a blockchain ecosystem that combines the security and predictability institutions need with the flexibility and innovation the industry demands.