What iSHARE Foundation does

iSHARE Foundation (legal entity: Stichting iSHARE Foundation; CoC 73058289) is a Dutch non-profit foundation headquartered at Villapark 7, 3051 BP Rotterdam, established to provide and maintain a Trust Framework for European data spaces. The foundation operates a federated and distributed governance framework, branded as the iSHARE Trust Framework, that delivers legal, operational, and technical specifications enabling organisations to share data safely, fairly, and with trust across organisational and sectoral boundaries. Core technical components include the Authorisation Registry, the Participant Registry, Verifiable Credentials support, and machine-readable OpenAPI specifications published across multiple versions (2.0 through 3.0), all exposed through a Developer Portal, a Certification Test Environment, and a Data Space Template aligned with DSSC Blueprint 3.0.

The foundation is partially funded by the European Union and holds ISO/IEC 27001:2022 certification alongside GDPR-compliant personal data processing. Its go-to-market is community-led and partnership-driven: iSHARE sells annual membership across five tiers (Certified Parties, Data Spaces, Implementation Partners, iSHARE Hubs, Mission Partners), with pricing that varies by role and collaboration scheme and is expected to decline as the data space ecosystem scales. The foundation is lean by design, with three named executives — Executive Director Gerard van der Hoeven, COO Stefphen Mans (joined June 2025), and Information Security Officer Vinith Bhandari — and is governed by a Supervisory Board alongside participant bodies including the Council of Participants and Change Advisory Board.

iSHARE serves data owners, data space consortia, certified parties, system integrators, hubs, mission partners, and developers across European verticals such as logistics (BDI), energy (DVU), smart cities/mobility (DMI), construction/built environment (DSGO), and the Green Deal (SAGE consortium of 43 partners across 10+ EU countries). Its frameworks are interlinked with IDSA, GAIA-X, FIWARE, and the i4Trust initiative, and its Authorisation and Participant Registries are integrated into the DSSC Data Spaces Toolbox. Distribution channels are primarily self-serve via the Developer Portal, OpenAPI portal, and Data Space Template, supplemented by community engagement through Slack, GitHub, LinkedIn, YouTube, and direct membership sales.

Name

iSHARE Foundation

Legal name

Stichting iSHARE Foundation

Website

https://ishare.eu

Company type

Private

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

iSHARE Foundation is a Dutch non-profit that maintains a federated Trust Framework for European data spaces, enabling organisations across logistics, energy, mobility, construction, and sustainability to share data with data sovereignty, identity verification, and interoperability. It monetises via tiered annual memberships and partial EU funding.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Data Sharing Infrastructure

NAICS

Professional Organizations (81392)

SIC

Services-Membership Organizations (8600), International Affairs (9721)

akta.pro primary industry

Private Foundations (BPAGAKAA)

akta.pro secondary industry

Community Foundations (BPAGAKAB)

Keywords

• Data sharing
• Trust framework
• Data spaces
• Identity federation
• Authorisation registry

Headquarters

HQ city

Rotterdam

HQ country

Netherlands

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Software

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Membership Fees: iSHARE Foundation operates a membership program with multiple tiers (Certified Parties, Data Spaces, Implementation Partners, iSHARE Hubs, Mission Partners). Membership costs vary based on role and collaboration scheme. The foundation is described as a non-profit organisation.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

iSHARE Foundation is a non-profit foundation (stichting) based in Rotterdam, Netherlands that operates a Trust Framework enabling organisations to share data safely, fairly, and with mutual trust across data spaces. It provides the technical infrastructure (APIs, registries, and certification) that allows participants in a data ecosystem to authenticate, authorise, and exchange data in a standardised, interoperable way.

Product overview

iSHARE Foundation offers a unified Trust Framework as its core product, supported by a portfolio of developer tools and documentation resources. The Trust Framework provides legal, operational, and technical specifications for data sovereignty and trusted data sharing across European data spaces. It is complemented by the Developer Portal (technical implementation guides, API references, and conformance testing), the OpenAPI Specifications (machine-readable API definitions), the Data Space Template (bridging documentation for data space designers), the Trust Body of Knowledge (TrustBoK), the Cookbook for Data Spaces (practical step-by-step guidance), and the Change Management Portal (version governance). Together these form an integrated toolkit for organisations to adopt, implement, and govern trusted data spaces.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• iSHARE Trust Framework A standardised trust framework consisting of technical agreements and protocols that enable organisations across sectors to safely exchange data within data spaces, with shared rules on identity, authentication, authorisation, and data sharing.
• iSHARE APIs OpenAPI specifications and programmatic interfaces that allow participants to integrate with the iSHARE trust framework for identity, authentication, and authorisation exchanges.
• Authorisation Registry A registry component within the iSHARE framework that records and manages authorisation policies so participants know which parties are permitted to access which data.
• Participant Registry A registry of organisations that are certified participants in the iSHARE data-sharing network, providing discoverability of trusted parties within the ecosystem.
• Developer Portal & Certification Test Environment An online portal providing documentation, OpenAPI specifications, and a test environment where developers can build and certify their integrations against the iSHARE Trust Framework.

Quantifiable outcome

• 43 partners from more than 10 EU countries in SAGE consortium alone
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers5 records

Segments7 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

Yes

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature5 records

Partnerships

17 partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• International Data Spaces Association (IDSA)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerLong-standing relationship with IDSA team. iSHARE is recognised as one of the IDS Connector levels for Data Sovereignty. Both organisations have grown together and work toward shared goals of data sovereignty in data spaces.
• GAIA-XcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerGAIA-X initiative is closely connected to how iSHARE operates today, with data sovereignty as a central principle shared by both organisations.
• FIWAREcoreTechnology or IntegrationFIWARE Context Broker technology CEF Building Block is fully compatible with iSHARE. Both collaborate through the i4Trust initiative.
• Centre of Excellence for Data Sharing and Cloud (CoE-DSC)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCoE-DSC supports organisations in setting up trust mechanisms for safe and trusted data sharing, helping them benefit from business opportunities across sectoral and geographic boundaries.
• NL AI CoalitieminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPublic-private partnership where government, business, educational and research institutions, and civil society organisations collaborate to accelerate and connect AI developments and initiatives.
• i4TrustcoreStrategic or Co-development Partneri4Trust initiative mobilising 5.8 million euros to boost data sharing and facilitate SME innovation capability through the creation of data spaces. Combines FIWARE, iSHARE, and Fundingbox.
• BDI (Basic Data Infrastructure)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerBDI focuses on improving logistics sector data sharing efficiency. Uses iSHARE Trust Framework as foundational layer with interoperability goals toward IDSA and GAIA-X.
• DVU (Data Space for Energy Reduction in Non-Residential Buildings)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerDVU focuses on secure energy data sharing for CO2 reduction in non-residential buildings. Operates as federated data space using iSHARE Trust Framework.
• DMI (Dutch Metropolitan Innovations)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerDMI develops and manages data for smart urbanisation and mobility solutions. Works as federated data space using iSHARE Trust Framework.
• DSGO (Digitaal Stelsel Gebouwde Omgeving)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerDSGO optimises data sharing within built environment sector. Uses iSHARE Trust Framework for identity verification and access control.
• SAGE (Sustainable Green Europe) Data SpacecoreStrategic or Co-development Partner43 partners from 10+ EU countries. iSHARE leads governance framework design (Work Package 4) and CO2 data innovation for Green Deal Data Space. EU-funded with 16 million euro budget.
• MFFBasminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerMFFBas is one of the current data spaces or initiatives collaborating with the Foundation using the Trust Framework.
• 4shippingminorOthersListed partner in iSHARE ecosystem community.
• APM TerminalsminorOthersListed partner in iSHARE ecosystem community.
• CargonautminorOthersListed partner in iSHARE ecosystem community.
• DakosyminorOthersListed partner in iSHARE ecosystem community.
• ECT RotterdamminorOthersListed partner in iSHARE ecosystem community.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Emerging players

• Solid (Inrupt): Solid, stewarded by Inrupt, provides a decentralised web platform for personal and organisational data pods with strong data sovereignty semantics. It targets adjacent data sovereignty outcomes to iSHARE but at the personal-data layer rather than inter-organisational data spaces.
• MyData Global: MyData Global is a non-profit advocating for human-centric personal data management and sovereign data flows. It shares iSHARE's data sovereignty philosophy and participates in the same European policy conversations around data spaces and trust frameworks.
• Ocean Protocol: Ocean Protocol provides a decentralised data exchange protocol for sharing and monetising data while preserving privacy. It targets the same trusted cross-organisational data sharing opportunity iSHARE addresses, with a different (token-based) technical mechanism.

Broad incumbents

• Cyera: Cyera is a venture-backed data security platform offering discovery, classification, and access governance across enterprise data estates. It addresses adjacent trust-and-governance outcomes to iSHARE at a broader, commercial scale rather than as a sectoral trust standard.

Direct peers

• Manufacturing-X: Manufacturing-X is a German-led federated data space initiative for the manufacturing sector, building on data sovereignty and trust frameworks aligned with IDSA/GAIA-X. It is a sectoral peer pursuing the same architectural playbook iSHARE enables.
• International Data Spaces Association (IDSA): IDSA maintains the IDS Reference Architecture and a trust framework for industrial data spaces. iSHARE is recognised as one of the IDS Connector levels for Data Sovereignty, making IDSA the closest direct peer with overlapping scope and target audience.
• GAIA-X: GAIA-X is the European initiative for sovereign data infrastructure whose data sovereignty principles are central to how iSHARE operates. The two organisations are mutually aligned and compete for the same ecosystem of European data space builders.
• Catena-X: Catena-X is the automotive industry data space built on sovereign data-sharing principles and trust services comparable to iSHARE's framework. It targets the same federated data space architecture and overlapping enterprise buyer base in Europe.
• Data Spaces Support Centre (DSSC): DSSC coordinates the design and adoption of common European data spaces, including the Blueprint 3.0 that iSHARE's Data Space Template aligns to. iSHARE registries are integrated into the DSSC Toolbox, positioning DSSC as both collaborator and reference-architecture gatekeeper.
• Mobility Data Space: Mobility Data Space is a German-academic-industry initiative providing a trusted data exchange platform for mobility data. It addresses the same trusted cross-organisational data sharing problem iSHARE solves and serves an overlapping ecosystem of European mobility and logistics participants.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/ishare_works
• GitHubgithub.com/iSHAREScheme
• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCqkg3BorfgAjKISoOuNs25w?view_as=subscriber
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/isharefoundation

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about iSHARE Foundation