Banking giants Wells Fargo and The Hong Kong and Shanghai Banking Corporate Limited (HSBC) will be gearing up to use blockchain-based technologies to handle forex transactions.
The technology is provided by Baton Systems which is a payments firm that is transitioning into the blockchain space. The technology will is aiming to be a frictionless, blockchain-based system that can settle payments.
Mark Jones who is Wells Fargo’s co-head of the macro division comments on the use of the technology.
“The platform enables participants to efficiently settle bilateral cross border obligations across multiple onshore and offshore currencies, coupled with the added flexibility of extended settlement windows to optimize PvP [Payment versus payment] risk reduction opportunities.”
HSBC also sees this as a positive move for their forex business operations. Mark Williamson, global head of FX partnerships and propositions at HSBC sees this as a positive move. He said this will help in handling digital currencies that are currently gaining interest from investors.
The blockchain-based system will start off processing Euro, Canadian dollar, British pound, and the Us dollar. This is just for the initial stages as they plan to add more currencies in the future into the system.
The banking industry may not be as far behind as most within the crypto industry had assumed. As most banks are preparing to roll out their own digital currencies, it will be an interesting time ahead to see how this unfolds.
