Latest Blockchain News: Finextra Research

MEPs warm to distributed ledger tech

Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) have vowed not to regulate virtual currencies and distributed ledger technology out of existence.

21 April 2016

News/Blockchain

Swift sets out distributed ledger position

As the hype surrounding distributed ledger technology continues to build, Swift is acknowledging the inevitable and promising to evolve its platform to enable DLT-based services - but only when a series of "critical factors" have been addressed.

20 April 2016

News/Blockchain

Digital Asset Holdings acquires Swiss startup Elevence

Distributed ledger outfit Digital Asset Holdings has acquired Zurich-based Elevence Digital Finance, a startup that has developed a modelling language for determining rights and obligations in blockchain collaboration agreements.

20 April 2016

News/Blockchain

Barclays to work with six accelerator startups; internal team demos R3 Corda

Barclays Bank is exploring opportunities to work with six of the eleven startups that showcased their fintech propositions at a Demo Day at London’s O2 Arena, as the third London cohort of the UK bank's accelerator programme concluded

19 April 2016

News/Blockchain

Fed Governor warns of unintended consequences of distributed ledger adoption

Legacy technology and interoperability could be the stumbling blocks to widespread uptake of distributed ledgers in the financial markets, creating unintended consequences for the efficient functioning of markets, a Federal Reserve Bank governor has warned.

15 April 2016

News/Blockchain

European Parliament to host blockchain conference

The European Parliament is set to host a four day conference on virtual currencies and blockchains as it seeks to educate MEPs about the fast-growing world of distributed ledgers.

15 April 2016

News/Blockchain

CapGemini loads up on blockchain staff

CapGemini is to recruit 100 blockchain professionals within its financial services business unit by year-end, as central banks, financial institutions and technology firms begin to embrace the potential of the technology to drive transformative change within the industry.

14 April 2016

News/Blockchain

Fintechs warned: If it walks like a duck and quacks like a duck, it should be regulated like a duck

The president of the San Francisco Fed has hailed the potential of Silicon Valley fintech startups to transform financial services but warned them that they must expect to be regulated like old-fashioned banks.

13 April 2016

News/Blockchain

Fintech Pavillion to host Europe's top startups at EBAday 2016

Finextra and the Euro Banking Association are inviting some of Europe's most promising early-stage startups to present their ideas to banking delegates attending EBAday 2016, Europe's leading payments and transaction banking event.

13 April 2016

News/Blockchain

CFTC Commissioner hails potential of distributed ledger tech for regulators

Policymakers and regulators should adopt a 'do no harm' approach to the use of blockchain technology in financial services, according to Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) Commissioner J Christopher Giancarlo, who also argues that the distributed ledger could be a boon for watchdogs by improving transparency.

12 April 2016

News/Blockchain

Chain and MUFG conduct blockchain trials

Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group (MUFG) is collaborating with blockchain infrastructure outfit Chain on a proof-of-concept test for the application of distributed ledger technology in the issuance and transfer of Promissory Notes.

12 April 2016

News/Blockchain

Japan Exchange and NRI begin blockchain proof-of-concept

IT outfit Nomura Research Institute (NRI) is working with Japan Exchange Group and several major financial institutions to test the use of blockchain technology in the securities industry.

08 April 2016

News/Blockchain

Major banks perform successful test of smart contracts in CDS market

Four major banks, the DTCC and Markit have announced the completion of a successful test of the use of distributed ledger technology and smart contracts to manage post-trade processes in the credit default swaps market.

07 April 2016

News/Blockchain

Barclays backs UK launch of social payments app Circle

Social payments outfit Circle - which enables sterling, dollar and bitcoin money transfers across popular messaging platforms and other media - has launched in the UK with the support of Barclays Bank and an e-money issuer license from the Financial Conduct Authority.

06 April 2016

News/Blockchain

R3 outlines Corda distributed ledger for financial agreements

After six months of development, the R3 consortium has unveiled its Corda distributed ledger platform for recording and managing financial agreements.

05 April 2016

News/Blockchain

Bank of Ireland and BNP Paribas announce blockchain breakthroughs

New use cases for the adoption of blockchains in finance are appearing every day, with Bank of Ireland and BNP Paribas the latest to demonstrate the disruptive potential of the technology

05 April 2016

News/Blockchain

R3 enlists Microsoft Azure for distributed ledger push

Distributed ledger consortium R3 has struck a deal with Microsoft that will see the tech giant provide cloud-based tools, services and infrastructure for R3 lab locations around the world.

04 April 2016

News/Blockchain

Putin adviser calls bitcoin a virus

Russian authorities' opposition to virtual currencies has been underlined after a presidential adviser referred to bitcoin as an internet joke and a virus and urged that it be outlawed.

31 March 2016

News/Blockchain

Bussmann's holiday: UBS tech chief quits

Oliver Bussmann, the global CIO for UBS and the man credited with transforming the bank's IT, has left his role at the Swiss giant.

30 March 2016

News/Blockchain

DTCC trials distributed ledger tech for repo market

The Depository Trust and Clearing Corporation (DTCC) is working with Digital Asset Holdings on a distributed ledger-based system for the clearing and settlement of US repurchase agreements (repos).

29 March 2016