After completing the first phase of its digital currency pilot project, Sveriges Riksbank has found some critical issues that must be addressed before Stockholmers can buy coffee and kanelbullar with e-krona. In a recent study, Sweden’s central bank presented the first results of its central bank digital currency pilot on a network based on R3’s Corda blockchain. The Riksbank simulated core aspects of a potential CBDC system, including liquidity supply via the Riksbank’s settlement system, RIX, and network members serving as e-kronor distributors. The central bank also simulated participants, end-users and payment instruments like mobile apps. The Riksbank said that …

Red Date Technology, one of the builders of China’s Blockchain-based Service Network, has obtained licensing rights from R3 to resell both the free and enterprise Corda implementations in China. According to a press release by R3, the news marks the first occasion of the BSN developer being able to resell enterprise blockchain technology from an overseas company. Since the R3 deal is with BSN China, developers will create a permissioned version of Corda to comply with Chinese blockchain regulations. Also, with banks reportedly being one of the likely users of the network, the country’s UnionPay cloud infrastructure will play host …

Alfa-Bank, one of the largest private commercial banks in Russia, has joined a blockchain trade finance network backed by HSBC. According to an official announcement on Nov. 3, Alfa-Bank is the first Russian bank to become a member of Contour — a blockchain platform connecting the world’s major financial institutions like HSBC, ING and Citi. The network allows bank customers to track the processing and modification of trade finance transactions and cut operational costs. Evgenia Fomina, head of the Alfa-Bank lending directorate, said that Contour-based pilots in the Russian market intend to improve the quality of cross-border transactions, stating: “The …

The Bangladesh branch of global banking firm HSBC has conducted the country’s first blockchain-based letter of credit transaction on the Contour DLT platform. The transaction was used to settle the importation of 20,000 tonnes of fuel oil from United Group’s Singapore subsidiary United Mymensingh Power. HSBC Bangaladesh’s chief executive, Md Mahbub ur Rahman, described the transaction as showcasing the bank’s commitment “to supporting cross-border trade by Bangladeshi businesses using cutting-edge technology platforms.” “I believe this will usher in a new era of routing international trade transactions as businesses and governments recognize transparency, security and swiftness in performing tasks using blockchain …

Standard Chartered PLC, a British multinational banking and financial services company headquartered in London, England, has successfully leveraged blockchain technology to conduct Bangladesh’s first blockchain trade transaction, according to Newage on August 16. The Standard Chartered bank issued a Letter of Credit (LC) for the trade between garment exporter Viyellatex Ltd and Viyellatex Spinning on the Contour blockchain network. LC is a letter from a bank guaranteeing that a buyer's payment to a seller will be received on time and for the correct amount. The entire transaction was reportedly paperless and completed digitally through Contour’s network. Contour’s blockchain network builds …

DAML, a major smart contact language designed for building business-level blockchain applications, has been integrated with R3’s blockchain. Developed by United States’ blockchain startup Digital Asset, DAML, or Digital Asset Modeling Language, is now available on R3 commercial blockchain platform, Corda Enterprise. A cross-platform alternative to Corda’s native programming language In order to bring the cross-platform language to the Corda platform, Digital Asset partnered with international tech firm IntellectEU, the firm announced on July 27. Focused on emerging technologies like blockchain, IntellectEU provided commercial integration, enabling a new smart contract language on Corda. To date, Corda developers have only been …

The Singapore Fintech Association and R3 have entered a partnership to provide startups in the SFA network with access to R3’s Corda blockchain. In an announcement on July 14, the SFA said that startups would receive support from R3’s Venture Development program, which provides a gateway into R3’s ecosystem for all pre-series A companies that are building on Corda. Corda is an open-source enterprise blockchain platform that is used by an expanding network of over 350 participants who build distributed applications (CorDapp) on the platform for a range of industries, such as financial services, insurance and healthcare. Access to the …

Data privacy issues have been escalating in 2020 as personal data is increasingly being used to fight COVID-19. The Linux Foundation, a non-profit technology consortium, has today announced a new data privacy project featuring dozens of cross-industry giants like Mastercard and IBM. Called the ToIP Foundation, the new data trust coalition aims to provide a trusted exchange of data over the internet and establish a global standard to ensure digital trust. Blockchain consortium R3 outlines Corda’s potential for private transactions According to a May 5 announcement, the ToIP Foundation’s participants include a wide list of companies, governments and nonprofits across …

The world’s second-largest stock exchange and capital markets technology company, Nasdaq, has entered a partnership with enterprise blockchain solutions platform, R3. R3 announced the partnership on April 29, 2020, stating that Nasdaq will use its blockchain software, Corda, among other services. Their intention is to help financial institutions easily build and deploy institutional-grade digital assets. This is a long-term, non-exclusive partnership between the two firms, which means Nasdaq can still collaborate with other blockchain solution providers to work on new projects. R3’s compatibility with highly regulated environments inspired the partnership Johan Toll, the head of digital assets at Nasdaq, said …

Japan-based SBI Holdings announced on April 16 that it will begin using R3 blockchain-consortium technology for Forex Trading. This will be the first practical application of the Corda blockchain in the country. According to the announcement published in Nikkei Japan, the technology will be implemented in conjunction with a Tokyo-based systems management services firm called CAC. The use of Corda, which will be restricted within the company, will be used to share transaction history among involved traders. It will additionally be implemented between SBI Securities and SBI’s Forex platform Liquidity Market, or SBILM. Automatizing Forex’s transactions processes According to the …

As blockchain technology increasingly gains traction in the airline industry, another major international air company has announced a blockchain project. Flagship global airline KLM Royal Dutch Airlines is applying blockchain technology to facilitate intercompany settlements process with its subsidiaries. Part of one of the world’s biggest airlines, Air France-KLM, Royal Dutch Airlines has partnered with Dutch software startup Unchain.io in order to explore the potential benefits of blockchain technology for its business and internal processes. KLM’s Digital Studio was actively working on blockchain in recent years After close collaboration, Unchain provided KLM Royal Dutch Airlines with a strategic finance application …

BCB Group, a European crypto-focused payment processor for the likes of major global crypto firms like Coinbase, has secured a license from British regulators. The United Kingdom’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has officially approved the firm’s core subsidiary, BCB Payments, as an authorized payment institution (API), BCB Group announced on Jan. 29. The company is now officially regulated both in the U.K. and Switzerland Having secured an API license from the FCA, BCB Group now holds two regulatory approvals to offer cryptocurrency-related services in Europe. BCB Payments sister firm, BCB OTC Trading SARL, is already regulated in Switzerland as it’s …