Garrigues enters the digital trust business with the purchase of a 51% share in EAD Trust

Garrigues has acquired a 51% stake in EAD Trust, a company specializing in the development and provision of digital trust services and registered as a Qualified Trust Service Provider with the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Digital Transformation. With this movement, the firm is positioning itself in the key market of digital trust in the context of the upcoming regulation eIDAS2 (Electronic Identification, Authentication and Trust Services 2) regulation, a European Union initiative to update the current trust and digital identity services regulations and achieve a legal framework that is better suited to the needs of companies and individuals in an increasingly connected and digitized society.

With almost 15 years’ history, EAD Trust develops digital services, products and customized projects. Its commitment to quality and innovation is endorsed by its recognition as a Qualified Trust Service Provider operating throughout Europe, having passed strict compliance audits, in addition to its ISO 9001, ISO 27001, ISO 20000-1 and ENS certifications. The company issues qualified natural and legal person certificates, timestamps and website certificates, in addition to providing support on the cloud and online contracting and communications interposition services. The work of trust service providers such as EAD Trust will become more important with the forthcoming entry into force of the new European regulation, expected this year, which will redefine the market. In fact, this regulatory change will be a key development of the EUID Wallet, on which EAD Trust is actively working. 

The entry of Garrigues into its capital represents a strategic refocus for EAD Trust, which will become apparent in coming months with the launch of new products and services to strengthen its positioning in the digital trust market, both in Spain and the other countries in which Garrigues’ is present. Garrigues' extensive experience in the digital economy and its regulatory vision from all angles of business law provide a guarantee of legal certainty for new products and services.

Fernando Vives, executive chairman of Garrigues, highlights that "the digital economy is experiencing unprecedented growth, which brings with it the need to ensure legal certainty in all digital transactions. This investment in EAD Trust is a very important step in the firm's strategy to develop and enable legal digital infrastructure in the coming years. We are confident that, hand in hand with EAD Trust, we will be able to provide innovative and secure solutions to our clients, thus strengthening trust in digital transactions".

Julián Inza, chairman of EAD Trust, explains that "our mission is to promote the society of the future with ideas, products and services capable of minimizing transactions that still use paper as proof, given that it is already possible to generate, safeguard and present digital proof of any activity or relationship that provides a technical response to all legal needs. We are living in a world that needs to move from a physical to a digital paradigm and it is necessary to ensure the applicability of legal security tools in both. With Garrigues' support, we are ready to move to the next level".