FREEPORT, Bahamas, April 2018 /PRNewswire/ — PO8, the first Bahamian blockchain start-up has officially put The Bahamas on the world crypto stage. Known for its paradise islands attracting millions of tourists a year and its offshore banking, The Bahamas has now set its eyes on making Grand Bahama the crypto capital of the Americas, and PO8 is leading the way.

Bahamian born Co-founder and CEO, Matthew Arnett, is spearheading PO8, a unique blockchain ecosystem democratizing and decentralizing the marine archaeology industry. Inspired by the almost two-decade marine salvage moratorium preventing underwater expeditions in Bahamian waters, PO8 is bringing marine archaeology to the blockchain to help The Bahamas retrieve long-lost historical artifacts. “PO8 is helping solve a real-life problem for The Bahamas. So much wealth and history are buried under our waters. And, so much has been taken away in the past due to lack of oversight and transparency. The salvage moratorium is finally coming to an end with PO8. We look forward to working with The Bahamas to bring back these treasures,” said Arnett.

Last month Minister of State for Grand Bahama, Kwasi Thompson, announced at a major blockchain conference The Bahamas’ new directive to bring blockchain innovation to the country and pave the way for local and foreign businesses like PO8 to embrace Grand Bahama as the ideal place to launch blockchain and cryptocurrency businesses. Deputy Prime Minister Peter Turnquest shared a similar vision, putting blockchain at the forefront of the Ministry of Finance’s exploration into digitizing financial and government services. “We are going to make that leap,” Turnquest shared with attendees.

For Arnett and PO8, they are taking Thompson’s and Turnquest’s directive to heart. “The Bahamas understands now is the time to welcome and innovate with blockchain. We are taking that leap for our nation and we hope many more will follow,” affirmed Arnett. By leveraging blockchain technology, PO8 will tokenize underwater expeditions in search of thousands of historical artifacts worth billions, through decentralized applications (Dapps) on the Ethereum network. Recovered artifacts will then be digitized, forming part of its registry and auction Dapps.