The Information & eGovernment Authority (iGA) and Beyon Connect, part of the Beyon Group, have launched eKey 2.0 during an exclusive event held at the Gulf Hotel Conference Hall.
The two-part event was inaugurated by General Shaikh Rashid bin Abdullah Al Khalifa, Minister of Interior and Chairman of the Ministerial Committee for Information and Communications Technology.
Shaikh Abdulla bin Khalifa Al Khalifa, Beyon Chairman, as well as key officials, and industry representatives from distinguished companies that are amongst the first to adopt the new eKey 2.0 system, were present at the inauguration.
Following the inauguration, a dedicated press conference was held by Mohammed Ali Al Qaed, Chief Executive of the Information & eGovernment Authority (iGA), Dr. Khalid Ahmed Al Mutawah, Deputy Chief Executive of Operation & Governance at iGA, Christopher Hild CEO of Beyon Connect, and Kaspar Bomholtz Chief Technology Officer at Beyon Connect, which affirmed that the launch of the enhanced eKey represents a major milestone in the Kingdom’s digital transformation journey.
Mohammed Ali Al Qaed, Chief Executive of iGA, emphasized that eKey 2.0 aligns fully with the directives of the Government of Bahrain, led by His Royal Highness Prince Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa, Crown Prince and Prime Minister, which underscores the importance of leveraging cutting-edge technology to enhance and modernize government services.
Shaikh Mohamed bin Khalifa Al Khalifa, CEO of Beyon Digital, noted Beyon Connect’s pride in the strategic partnership with iGA, highlighting a shared vision for delivering secure, innovative digital identity solutions based on transparency, privacy, and trust.
Shaikh Al Khalifa emphasized that the upgraded eKey 2.0 will provide an advanced level of security in identity authentication, benefiting both individuals and businesses. The system will also meet the identity verification process and the “Know Your Customer” (KYC) requirements for the commercial sector.
Christopher Hild, CEO of Beyon Connect, provided additional details during the press conference on the importance of eKey 2.0 as Bahrain’s national identity verification system, designed for both government and private sector service providers.
Hild noted that the system’s application in banking, finance, telecommunications, and healthcare demonstrated its role as a secure, efficient, and user-friendly identity authentication solution.
It was noted that eKey 2.0 is firmly aligned with international standards and also provides businesses with greater control over authentication sessions while ensuring full transparency and compliance with Bahrain’s data protection regulations.
