Danish payments company Nets has set its sights on blockchain technology, teaming up with local specialist Coinify on a development lab that will work on developing distributed ledger-based products and services.
Coinify claims to be the largest facilitator of blockchain payments in Europe, supporting more than 20 PSPs and reaching over 100,000 online businesses. With the likes of Bitcoin posing a potential threat to its card payment business, Nets has decided to tap the startup's expertise to get ahead of the game.
The pair will enlist "internationally renowned experts" as they build a set of proof of concepts at the new joint blockchain lab, working out how the technology can be applied commercially, securely and within regulatory frameworks.
Jan Plenge, SVP with responsibility for digital innovation, Nets, says: "It is important for Nets to closely monitor new digital technologies to be aware of the possibilities, even if that means blockchain technology could potentially challenge parts of our existing business. For many years, we have been the ones delivering the latest payment solutions to banks, and we intend to keep it that way, going forward."