More CSDs Expected to Work with SWIFT Financial messaging and systems cooperative SWIFT has just signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with seven central securities depositories (CSDs) that commits them to demonstrating how distributed ledger technology (DLT) could be put to work for post-trade operations, including corporate actions processing, shareholder and related voting, and proxy-voting…. Read More >>
How Real is the Bitcoin Phenomenon?
As I’m writing this piece, The Wall Street Journal is reporting that the price of bitcoin currency is hitting a new high: “The price of bitcoin crossed $13,000 on Wednesday afternoon, the latest milestone in the cryptocurrency’s massive rise.” We are having a moment with Bitcoin, which strangely follows the securities industry’s fascination with the… Read More >>
Blockchain’s Myths Starting to Fade: Report
Despite the hype, there is currently very little hard data to evaluate the benefits of blockchain-supported systems over existing infrastructures, according to a new report, “Blockchain in Capital Markets: More Evolution than Revolution,” by market research consultancy Opimas, based near Paris. The initial results of the blockchain/distributed ledger technology (DLT) are indicating that the emerging… Read More >>
Commerzbank, Others Simulate Money Market Transaction via DLT Platform
German financial institution Commerzbank, the KfW Banking Group, and the asset manager of Munich Re and ERGO, MEAG, have completed securities transaction simulations using blockchain/distributed ledger technology (DLT), and officials are encouraged by the efficiency gains that DLT may provide. The trio “jointly traded a Euro Commercial Paper (ECP) issued by KfW, and simultaneously replicated… Read More >>
R3, Synechron to Build DLT-based KYC Solution
12 Banks Support Synechron-R3 Effort Consultancy Synechron and enterprise software vendor R3 are collaborating to provide a know your customer (KYC) solution based on distributed ledger technology (DLT), and the partnership has the support of 12 global banks. Described as one of the largest DLT projects of the year, the KYC solution being developed will… Read More >>
FTF Awards Q&A: NRI Expands Into North America
(Editor’s note: Nomura Research Institute (NRI) won two honors in the 2017 FTF News Technology Innovation Awards competition: Best Clearing and Settlement Solution and Best New Post-Trade Solution. Unlike other industry awards events, the annual FTF Awards winners are chosen by a majority of qualified voters who are industry participants. FTF News reached out to… Read More >>
Four Banks Test DLT-Based ECP Platform
Enterprise software vendor R3 (formerly known as “blockchain consortium”) and four of its member banks — ABN Amro, Commerzbank, ING, and KBC — have developed a prototype solution for the issuance of euro commercial paper (ECP) on the group’s Corda distributed ledger technology (DLT) platform. Participants in the project say that it will prove to… Read More >>
BNP Subsidiary, SmartAngels Create Preliminary DLT Platform
BNP Paribas Securities Services is moving ahead with a key element of its embrace of blockchain/distributed ledger technology (DLT) via the completion of an initial phase of its partnership with SmartAngels, the Paris-based maker of a crowdfunding platform for equities. For their first deliverable, BNP Paribas Securities Services and SmartAngels are launching a share register… Read More >>
IBM, Synechron Look to Accelerate Blockchain Acceptance
The blockchain/distributed ledger technology (DLT) revolution is gaining more ground as established IT providers such as IBM and newer players such as Synechron, a financial services consulting and technology services provider, are deepening their commitment to the cutting-edge development environment. For instance, Synechron officials say that they are going to launch blockchain accelerator applications on… Read More >>
Could Blockchain/DLT Shift the Proxy Paradigm?
(Editor’s note: Service provider American Stock Transfer and Trust Company (AST) recently announced that it will launch a solution that uses cutting-edge blockchain/distributed ledger technology (DLT) for proxy vote tabulation. This new service is slated for the start of the 2018 proxy season. AST worked with NuArca, a blockchain/DLT solution provider, on the new offering,… Read More >>
