Five major banks eyeing blockchain technology

Bitcoin and global financial markets, especially banking institutions, have historically had a strained relationship, but recently, all parties involved have recognized the benefits of collaboration.

The following is a guest post by Marco Streng, co-founder and CEO of Genesis Mining.

The relationship between Bitcoin and global financial markets, especially banking institutions, has always been tense and can be described by words such as distant, intense, and malicious.

This is destined to be a relationship full of distrust from the beginning. On the one hand, Bitcoin must take itself seriously and position itself as a legitimate competitor to traditional banks and regulated currencies. In return, banks must reduce their rejection of cryptocurrencies.

But in recent years, both sides have realized that they can coexist and even benefit from cooperation. Some banks have begun to study the potential of Bitcoin and blockchain. Here are the steps taken by leading financial institutions around the world:

1. Citibank. Citibank, the world's eighth largest bank, recently announced that it has been developing distributed ledger technology over the past few years. Kenneth Moore of Citigroup's Innovation Lab once said: "We are now launching and operating three independent systems at Citi to develop blockchain distributed ledger technology."

2. UBS. UBS has a high reputation in the global financial market, so this year UBS announced that it would set up a research lab in London to explore the application of blockchain technology, which is a big deal in the industry. Oliver Bussmann, chief information officer of UBS, said in a statement: "Our innovation lab at Level39 will provide a unique platform to explore emerging technologies such as blockchain and cryptocurrency and understand their potential impact on the industry."

3. Barclays Bank. Barclays Bank of the United Kingdom has signed an agreement with European Bitcoin company Safello to test the application of blockchain technology. Safello CEO Frank Schuil said: "The signing of an agreement between a first-tier bank and a Bitcoin company is a sign of the times. Their attitude is changing, and changing rapidly."

4. Goldman Sachs Investment: This super-large investment company acknowledged the advantages and disadvantages of Bitcoin as a currency in a report released in 2014, and said that Bitcoin still needs to develop and the blockchain has great responsibilities.

5. Societe Generale. Major French bank Societe Generale recently posted a job listing for IT developers for Bitcoin, blockchain and cryptocurrency. While this move is newsworthy, it is becoming increasingly common as major banks around the world are rapidly taking steps to capitalize on the potential benefits of blockchain technology.

It can be said that the ice between major banks and the cryptocurrency space is melting. If there was dissatisfaction and mistrust, bridges are being built, and mutual interests are being explored in new technologies.

It remains to be seen how global financial markets will ultimately adopt blockchain technology. The cryptocurrency space further reinforces the unregulated nature of Bitcoin and other altcoins, and custodial bank controls are also not trusted. If major banks want to prevail in the Bitcoin space, they must prove that they can use the technology in a way that meets these expectations.