Swiss blockchain startup Taurus has rounded up 35 banks for the launch of its interbank network for digital assets.
The network leverages Taurus' relationships with global banks and market makers - such as Deutsche Bank and State Street - to create an ecosystem where regulated financial institutions retain control over their assets, while interacting electronically directly with each other.
It's designed to make transactions faster, reduce counterparty risk, and generally improve how banks manage collateral.
Vassili Lavrov, head of product infrastructure, says: “ Network participants retain control of their assets and never rely on Taurus to enter or unwind transactions. Taurus-Network (TN) creates an ecosystem covering public and permissioned DLTs, as well as all types of assets whether cryptocurrencies, tokenised securities, and digital currencies."
Arab Bank Switzerland, Capital Union Bank, Flowdesk, ISP Group, Misyon Bank, and Swissquote are amond the early participants. Additional major financial institutions are expected to join in the first semester of 2025.
As part of the TN collateral management platform, participants can pledge funds or assets for instant credit to other participants. Banks can use their balance sheet to participate in syndicated loans originated by other members of the network, secured by the TN collateral management platform. Exchanges can implement 'off-exchange trading' processes with the counterparty and risk limits of their choice without moving funds from the Taurus-Protect custody system.
Travel rule compliance and proof of reserves are embedded by design, and TN reduces to zero necessary manual compliance work such as proof of ownership controls or cumbersome Satoshi tests, as they are automatically and cryptographically embedded into the system;
Taurus says that the network reduces by >90% the operational burden of transaction management, such as identity management and whitelisting processes, providing participants with irrevocable proof of identity as well as exchange and digital asset addresses automatically.
Rani Jabban, managing director and ExCo member at Arab Bank Switzerland, says: "Joining Taurus-Network empowers us to securely collaborate with other leading financial institutions while retaining full control over our operations. Taurus-Network sets a new standard for efficiency and trust in the industry, and we’re excited to be part of it.”
Taurus in 2023 scooped a $65 million funding round led by Credit Suisse, with participation from Deutsche Bank, Pictet Group, Cedar Mundi Ventures, as well as from Series A investors, Arab Bank Switzerland and Investis.