Telecom giant Airtel acquires strategic stake in blockchain technology startup AqillizNew Delhi: Telecom major Bharti Airtel on Thursday announced that it has acquired a strategic stake in Aqilliz, a 'Blockchain as a Service Company'.Airtel aims to deploy Aqilliz's blockchain technologies at scale across its fast-growing adtech (Airtel Ads), digital entertainment (Wynk Music and Airtel Xstream) and digital marketplace (Airtel Thanks App) offerings."Bharti Airtel...has acquired a strategic stake in Aqilliz a Blockchain as a Service Company under the Airtel Startup Accelerator Program, subject to applicable statutory approvals," the company said in a statement.It did not divulge the financial details of the deal.Singapore-based Aqilliz has developed a patented hybrid blockchain platform, Atom, integrating differential privacy and federated learning on a distributed digital ledger.The statement added that this allows brands to create secure and consent-based solutions to engage with customers in a rapidly-evolving digital economy that's becoming increasingly decentralised.