Linux Foundation Europe launches with a dozen members, the intent to form a disruptive inaugural project, and original research offering new insights into the European dynamics of open source. Headquartered in Brussels, Belgium, Linux Foundation Europe is led by Gabriele Columbro as General Manager. Columbro will continue to serve as the Executive Director of the Fintech Open Source Foundation (FINOS).

Linux Foundation Europe aims  to accelerate the growth of thriving open collaborative efforts focused on challenges and opportunities of all European constituencies, from individuals to public and private sectors, while providing an on-ramp for European projects and companies to succeed and collaborate on a global scale.

Linux Foundation Europe will enable open collaborative projects to be hosted directly in European territory. Its inaugural project, the Open Wallet Foundation (OWF), just announced yesterday its intent to form. OWF is a new collaborative effort established to develop a digital wallet engine supporting interoperability for a wide range of use cases. The OWF initiative benefits from strong support, including leading companies across technology, public sector, and industry vertical segments.

Linux Foundation Europe partnered with Linux Foundation Research and 13 other European entities, to explore the state of open source from a European perspective, focusing on government, enterprise and non-profit initiatives.