Eight banking giants experiment with Bitcoin and blockchain technology

In its relatively short history, Bitcoin — and its underlying blockchain technology — has captivated thinkers around the world, but not everyone has.

In its relatively short history, Bitcoin — and its underlying blockchain technology — has captivated thinkers around the world, but not everyone has been quick to see its potential.

In part because of its original billing as a threat to the traditional financial system, these institutions may have understandably adopted a sharply critical and deeply skeptical attitude toward the technology.

Although major institutions find Bitcoin problematic as a currency, they appear to be placing more faith in the blockchain, using its closed database system to provide benefits.

At this point, large financial players have begun to emerge and discuss their attempts at the Bitcoin blockchain and other decentralized ledgers.

While it remains to be seen how these experiments will pan out, it’s clear that some of the world’s most prominent banks are beginning to turn to the technology.

Here are the eight largest institutions that have publicly announced their interest so far:

1. BNP Paribas

According to the International Financial Times, BNP Paribas is reportedly investigating the possibility of adding Bitcoin as a currency to its funding.

The bank’s possible plans to embrace the crypto space came after one of its analysts, John Parrish, published an article. Writing for the bank’s magazine Essence, Parrish stressed that blockchain would either create absolute corruption or improve world trade.

2. Societe Generale

Another French bank — the third-largest by assets — plans to hire a developer focused on Bitcoin.

The Société Générale (SocGen) published a job listing on July 2, seeking a "digital technology developer in bitcoin, blockchain and cryptocurrencies." According to the ad, the position would involve research and development involving cryptocurrencies and blockchain.

3. Citibank

CoinDesk first learned that Citigroup told the UK government it was considering creating its own digital currency.

Ken Moore, head of Citigroup’s Innovation Lab, later told the International Business Times that the world’s eighth-largest bank has been exploring distributed ledger technology for the past few years. Moore also revealed that the bank has built a blockchain and is testing its own cryptocurrency, Citicoin.

4. UBS

Swiss investment bank UBS announced earlier this year that it was setting up a blockchain technology research lab in a financial district in London.

UBS said the work done at the innovation lab will seek to bridge the gap between banking and financial technology to determine how traditional banks can grow through innovation.

Oliver Bussmann, UBS chief information officer, said in a statement:

"Our innovation lab will serve as a unique platform to explore emerging technologies such as blockchain and cryptocurrency, and understand their potential impact on industry."

5. Barclays

Just last month, Barclays, a British multinational bank, revealed its plans to experiment with Bitcoin technology.

The purpose of the exercise, Barclays said, is to investigate how blockchain technology can improve the financial services sector. Barclays has also supported crypto companies in the past. In March this year, the bank accepted three startups working on blockchain-related projects into its Accelerator program.

A month later, Osama Fayyad, chief data officer at Barclays, publicly praised blockchain technology, highlighting its transformative capabilities at the SWIFT Business Forum in London.

“Underneath Bitcoin lies the blockchain technology, which I think has the power to be transformative,” he said.

6. Goldman Sachs

Goldman Sachs published a report on electronic currency last year, emphasizing the potential of blockchain technology.

While the report initially dismissed the idea of ​​Bitcoin as a currency and labeled it a commodity, this year, a report released by its asset research analysts highlighted Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies as part of a larger trend that could change the way transactions are done.

Recently, the American multinational investment banking company joined a $50 million investment round in a Bitcoin company - and its participation in this investment has caused a lot of discussion in the industry.

7. Banco de Santander

The Spanish banking giant has been experimenting with blockchain technology.

While its research and development leaders are set to reveal more details about its technology’s applications at the Consensus conference, we already have some insight into the bank’s perspective on blockchain technology.

In a report published by Santander InnoVentures, the bank’s venture capital fund, Oliver Wyman and Andymis Grupp said blockchain technology could reduce infrastructure costs by $15-20 billion by 2022.

In an interview with CoinDesk, Mariano Bellinco, managing director of Santander InnoVentures, said:

"We shouldn't be focused on adopting one type of electronic currency. The underlying technology is powerful, and I think we'll see that technology adopted by the industry much more quickly."

8. Standard Chartered Bank

Anju Patwardhan, Chief Innovation Officer at Standard Chartered Bank, recently took to social media to share her thoughts on the Bitcoin blockchain, highlighting how it can help reduce credit card, wire and remittance costs.

But Patwardhan also said that Bitcoin will never be a replacement for paper money.