The Camino Network Foundation is a non-profit organization based in Switzerland that has built a blockchain-based ecosystem transforming the global travel industry. We sat down with them to discuss their vision for the future of travel and their partnership with the Decentralized Identity Foundation (DIF) - a collaboration focused on creating seamless, secure travel experiences through self-sovereign identity.

Camino Network describes itself as 'the travel industry layer one.' What specific travel industry pain points are you aiming to solve?

Camino Network is designed to address key pain points in the $11 trillion global travel industry by providing specialized Layer 1 blockchain infrastructure. Those pain points include:

  1. High Distribution Costs: Current intermediary commissions can reach 20%, significantly cutting into margins. Camino Network enables direct, efficient B2B connections via Camino Messenger, cutting costs.
  2. Inefficient Payment Processes: Traditional payment systems often take days to weeks for settlement and impose fees of 3%-8%, eroding travel companies' already thin EBIT margins (typically 1-4%). Camino offers lower-cost, faster payment and settlement solutions, improving cash flow and profitability.
  3. Lengthy Time-to-Market: Onboarding travel products can take up to six months. Camino simplifies and accelerates this process, allowing companies to bring offerings to market much more quickly.

Further, Camino provides:

  1. Secure Data Exchange & Identity Verification: Camino provides robust tools for secure data sharing and identity management, helping companies comply with regulations while maintaining user trust and operational efficiency.
  2. Tailored Blockchain Governance: Unlike Web2 systems and organizations today, Camino Network is governed by travel companies (over 100 validators), ensuring solutions are directly aligned with industry needs and fostering collaboration.

In summary, Camino Network directly tackles inefficiencies in travel distribution, payments, and data management, enabling companies to operate faster, more securely, and at a lower cost in a competitive global market.

Your white paper details how Self-Sovereign Identity (SSI) could transform travel experiences. Could you share some concrete examples of how SSI could improve the traveler journey, from booking to destination?

Self-Sovereign Identity (SSI) transforms travel along the customer journey by giving travelers full control over their personal data. For example, during the booking process, travelers can securely share data to unlock rewards, like a 10% discount from Sleap.io for Camino (CAM) holders. At the airport, SSI-enabled zero-knowledge proofs (ZKP) streamline passport control while triggering airdropped discount vouchers from airport shops. Upon arrival, travelers can skip the rental car counter, access their vehicle instantly via SSI verification, and check into hotels digitally, eliminating paperwork and delays. These use cases enhance convenience, privacy, and personalization throughout the journey.

You've implemented mandatory KYC for smart contract deployments and KYB for validators. How does this compliance-first approach benefit travel companies looking to adopt blockchain solutions?

Camino's compliance-first approach with mandatory KYC for smart contract deployments and KYB for validators ensures a trusted and professional ecosystem for travel companies. Adhering to regulatory standards enhances legitimacy and simplifies onboarding, reducing risks in global/cross-border collaboration. This fosters confidence among partners and regulators, making blockchain adoption smoother and more secure for the travel industry.

The Camino Messenger protocol is designed to standardize travel industry communication. How do you see decentralized identity integrating with these messaging standards to improve B2B operations?

The Camino Messenger protocol is designed to standardize travel industry communication. Integrating decentralized identity with the Camino Messenger protocol can streamline B2B operations, combat fraud, and boost efficiency. By standardizing the communication and identity verification processes, the travel industry can build a foundation for innovative and automated workflows, leading to secure and personalized offers in the travel industry.

Decentralized identity offers key B2B advantages, including:

  • Efficiency in Onboarding and Collaboration: DID integration can drastically reduce the time needed for partner onboarding through automation, as well as seamless and granular access control
  • Enhanced Data Privacy and Control: Decentralized identity allows businesses to control how their data is shared within the messaging ecosystem. This is crucial in the travel industry, where sensitive information, such as customer preferences or itineraries, needs to be handled with care.

Your whitepaper mentions authenticating travel service providers through the network. How do you balance the need for trust and verification with the decentralized nature of blockchain?

Balancing trust and verification with the decentralized nature of blockchain requires a thoughtful approach combining transparency, security, and efficiency.

  1. Decentralized Verification: Travel service providers are authenticated using blockchain-based Decentralized Identifier (DID) registries, enabling real-time credential verification without relying on a central authority. This ensures authenticity while preserving decentralization.
  2. Decentralized Governance: A Decentralized Autonomous Consortium governs the network (these are the validators in Camino Network), aligning verification processes with the collective needs of industry stakeholders while maintaining trust and efficiency.
  3. Transparent Yet Private Verification: Privacy-preserving technologies, like zero-knowledge proofs (zk-SNARKs), enable secure verification of credentials without exposing sensitive data. Decentralized storage further protects sensitive information while allowing access only to authorized parties.
  4. Security and Resilience: By leveraging blockchain's decentralized architecture, applications are free from single points of failure, offering robust security and operational continuity even during disruptions.

This approach ensures a secure, transparent, and efficient environment for authenticating travel service providers, fostering trust without compromising blockchain's decentralized principles.

With fraudulent bookings being a major industry issue, how can Camino's identity solutions help travel companies reduce fraud while improving the customer experience?

Fraudulent bookings are minimized as only verified entities can participate in transactions, ensuring trustworthiness. Verifiable credentials issued by trusted organizations will confirm the legitimacy of bookings, reducing chargebacks and fake reservations. The blockchain ensures an immutable audit trail, enabling real-time verification and fraud detection.

The travel industry generates massive amounts of customer data. How does Camino's approach to digital identity help companies manage this data securely while meeting privacy regulations?

Camino’s digital identity approach uses decentralized identity and self-sovereign identity (SSI) principles to give customers control over their data. Verifiable credentials allow users to share only necessary information, minimizing data exposure and ensuring compliance with privacy regulations like GDPR. Sensitive data remains off-chain, while blockchain ensures secure and tamper-proof authentication. Privacy-preserving technologies like zero-knowledge proofs enable verification without revealing personal details. This reduces the risk of data breaches and allows travel companies to manage customer data securely while fostering trust and transparency.

What inspired you to join DIF, and how do you see travel industry standards for digital identity evolving through this collaboration?

Joining the Decentralized Identity Foundation (DIF) was inspired by the need to address the travel industry's challenges with fragmented identity systems and security concerns. By collaborating with DIF, Camino aims to contribute to open standards that ensure interoperability, enabling seamless identity verification across travel providers. This partnership enables innovation, allowing the travel industry to adopt self-sovereign identity solutions, reducing fraud, enhancing privacy, and improving customer trust. Through DIF’s collaborative framework, the travel industry can transition to unified, decentralized identity standards, enabling a more secure, efficient, and customer-centric ecosystem.

Your white paper discusses a 'global future-proof travel operating system.' Looking ahead 5-10 years, how do you envision decentralized identity transforming the travel industry's digital infrastructure? For instance, could you share your vision for how digital passports, biometrics, and SSI might converge to create seamless cross-border travel experiences?

In 5-10 years, we envision travelers carrying a DID wallet containing their passports, visas, health certificates, and frequent traveler profiles. At borders, biometric scans (e.g., facial recognition) would instantly verify identities, matching them with blockchain-secured credentials, allowing seamless passage without physical documents.

For airlines, hotels, and car rentals, SSI would enable pre-verified booking and check-ins using digital IDs, reducing queues and manual verifications. Health credentials (e.g., vaccination records) could be securely shared during pandemics without compromising privacy. This approach would ensure faster, fraud-resistant, and privacy-compliant travel experiences, redefining global travel infrastructure.

Thanks to the Camino Network Foundation for sharing their insights about the future of travel, powered by decentralized identity. To learn more, visit https://foundation.camino.network/