Euroclear and Paxos pilot blockchain gold settlement
All clear for Euroclear
Central securities depositary Euroclear and blockchain firm Paxos have completed the first pilot for Euroclear Bankchain, a new blockchain settlement service for London bullion due to go live in 2017.
Over 600 OTC test bullion trades were settled on the Euroclear Bankchain platform over the course of the two-week pilot.
Angus Scott, director, product strategy and innovation at Euroclear, says the new settlement capability “will help lower risk and simplify the post-trade process”.
Participants in the pilot included Scotiabank, Société Générale, Citi, Dutch financial institute MKS PAMP Group and New York-based finserv advisory firm INTL FCStone. All are part of the Euroclear Bankchain Market Advisory Group that now includes 17 participants working with Euroclear and Paxos in the roll-out of the new service.
Over the coming months, Euroclear and Paxos will continue to work with the London bullion market and use feedback from the pilot. Another market simulation will run early next year in preparation for a production launch later in 2017.
There are other blockchain initiatives happening. At the same time as this pilot, ICAP, a UK-based financial services firm, is also jumping on the bandwagon and getting ready to process foreign exchange (FX) trades on blockchain.
