Dubai – Mubasher: Emaar Group on Monday announced plans to adopt blockchain technology by offering the Emaar community token for customers and partners by the end of 2019.

The Emaar community token will allow users to access a referral and loyalty system across the entire company, the Dubai-based real estate group said in a statement.

The group has appointed Swiss-based Lykke AG to create the technology build of Emaar’s community token based on the Ethereum blockchain and the ERC20 token framework.

“We have embraced the digital world even as we continue to build the most advanced and innovative physical structures and we use both to delight and benefit our customers and stakeholders globally,” Mohamed Al Abbar, chairman of Emaar Properties, commented on the step.

He added that such move marks a significant leap in the company’s digital transformation journey.

“We have developed cutting edge technology infrastructure with mass-market usability to support our core belief that all mobile and internet users should be able to participate in economic activity, regardless of size of contribution,” Richard Olsen, founder and CEO of Lykke, said.

It is worth noting that the token will be transferable across the entire global Emaar ecosystem, including real estate, malls, hospitality, entertainment, facilities management and online shopping, according to the statement.

The Dubai government is aiming to use blockchain for all applicable government documents by 2020.

By the end of Monday’s session, Emaar Properties’ stock rose 0.21% at AED 4.75.