China primed to push advances in blockchain and 5G development
Financial services, particularly digital currency, payment processing, and market trading and settlement leading blockchain usage. Mainland China is primed to become a global leader in the implementation of blockchain, the distributed ledger technology behind cryptocurrency bitcoin, as the central government reinforces the creation of digital intelligent services in the country, according to industry experts. That development is expected to run in parallel with preparations being made by the mainland’s telecommunications industry to roll out advanced 5G mobile services by 2020. “When 5G, the Internet of Things and autonomous driving start to get more prevalent then blockchain could potentially become the underlying ledger to record transactions and maintain trust in those […]
Japan’s largest bank is testing digitized checks on a Blockchain in Singapore
The Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ, Japan’s largest bank, has chosen blockchain technology as the core infrastructure toward testing the digitization of checks using Singapore’s Fintech-friendly regulatory sandbox installed by the country’s central bank, the Monetary Authority of Singapore. First announced last year, the Proof of Concept (PoC) testing is the result of a joint endeavor between the bank and major Japanese conglomerate Hitachi. The two companies developed a blockchain-based infrastructure to issue, transfer and collect electronic checks. With the PoC testing, the bank issued and settled checks while the Hitachi Group’s companies in Singapore received the electronic checks and then deposited the funds. “The project is to digitalize entire check […]
Traity releases micro-insurance product ‘Kevin’ in open blockchain balance sheet
Traity, a network that builds reputation standards, has collaborated with Suncorp, the largest Australian insurance conglomerate, and announced the release of a new micro-insurance product ‘Kevin’ in an open blockchain balance sheet. In an ‘Open Blockchain Balance Sheet,’ for every new transaction that Kevin approves, it buys $10 worth of bitcoin. When a transaction ends positively, Kevin sells $10 worth of bitcoin and on negative grounds, it needs to pay the guarantee, an additional $100 into Kevin’s Open Balance Sheet. This indicates that there is a 10x liability leverage that is reasonable. “$100 may not sound like much, but it covers most of the transactions online. Furthermore, we think that […]
Japanese blockchain firm bitFlyer allocates shares to local financial institutions
Tokyo-based blockchain company bitFlyer announced that it has allocated new shares to third parties including Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation Group, Mizuho Financial Group, and Dai-ichi Life Insurance Company for the purpose of fundraising. With the newly raised funds from Japan’s top financial institutions, bitFlyer intends to build up its financial base as well as accelerate their efforts in establishing itself in the bitcoin and blockchain space through a strategic partnership with these firms. The blockchain company aims to develop and design core systems that make use of blockchain technology for more industries in the future to realize their management. bitFlyer has provided the technology for viability test run by Sumitomo […]
Australian FinTech launches International FinTech platform
The team behind the highly successful AustralianFinTech.com.au, this week launch their International platform, InternationalFinTech.com, aimed at connecting the FinTech industry on a global scale. Founder and CEO, Cameron Dart, says International FinTech has been born on the back of the highly successful Australian FinTech platform and growing demand from the global community to have a dedicated online presence for their sector. “International FinTech mirrors the Australian FinTech platform, including a dedicated industry newsfeed and a comprehensive directory of FinTech companies globally. “The site also aims to educate users of new financial technologies such as peer to peer lending and cryptocurrency, all presented in simple terms with no financial jargon” says […]
A Complete Beginners Guide To FinTech In 2017
You may have heard the relatively new term “FinTech” bandied about, but what actually is it? And why is it important for all entrepreneurs to know about and understand? FinTech stands for Financial Technologies, and in its broadest definition, that’s exactly what it is: technologies used and applied in the financial services sector, chiefly used by financial institutions themselves on the back end of their businesses. But more and more, FinTech is coming to represent technologies that are disrupting traditional financial services, including mobile payments, money transfers, loans, fundraising, and asset management. Don’t assume that FinTech is simply a fad or buzzword: Accenture recently released a report which found that […]
Indian bitcoin startups form blockchain and digital currency association
Leading bitcoin companies in India have come together to set up a new alliance to create an industry body in order to engage with the regulators. The Economic Times reports that Zebpay, Unocoin, Coinsecure and Searchtrade have formed the Blockchain and Virtual Currency Association of India (BVAI) and are moving forward to formally register it. The formation of BVAI follows the recent notice by the country’s central bank, The Reserve Bank of India (RBI), cautioning users when engaging in bitcoin-related activities. The startups met for their first meeting on Friday and discussed the RBI circular among other things. “While we have been planning to create an association for some time, […]
Most banks to adopt blockchain by 2020
More than 80 per cent of global bankers expect to see commercial adoption of the blockchain by 2020, and over half of global financial institutions investing or planning to invest in the technology this year. This was a key finding of a survey of 100 financial services professionals conducted by Infosys Finacle and reported in “Blockchain Technology: From Hype to Reality”. The research also concluded that the average investment in blockchain projects this year is expected to be about USD$1 million with 51 per cent of CTOs and CIOs driving initiatives. Only four per cent of the survey respondents said they had spent more than US$10 million on their blockchain […]
