Indian IT services company Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) announced on April 10 that it carried out what it defines as the world's first cross-border securities settlement between two central depositories using the Quartz blockchain. The Central Securities Depositories (CSD) involved are reportedly Maroclear, the CSD of Morocco, and Kuwait Clearing Company, the CSD of Kuwait. During the test, a set of equities and fixed income securities from both markets were created on the chain along with accounts to hold them, and were instantaneously transferred. The system reportedly used cash coins on the BaNCS Network, powered by the Quartz blockchain. The …

Private bank Kleinwort Hambros launched an exchange-traded note (ETN) made up of blockchain-related companies, financial news outlet Finextra reported on April 8. Kleinwort Hambros is owned by Societe Generale, acting as their private wealth management division in the United Kingdom. Societe Generale itself is a multinational investment bank headquartered in Paris, with total assets of around 1.3 trillion euros ($1.4 trillion) in 2018. Per the report, the new derivative is available for a minimum investment of £1,000 (equivalent to about $1,300) and has been listed in Luxemburg. The stocks reportedly include 20 companies which are expected to profit from blockchain …

United Kingdom startup Acre Software raised about $6.5 million to apply blockchain technology to the mortgage and insurance application process for advisers, a press release published on April 4 states. Per the release, nearly three-quarters of UK mortgages are facilitated by advisers, and the company aims to help them retain their position by matching the speed of an end-user service. Acre reportedly uses blockchain to store all the data about mortgage advice immutably. The investment reportedly comes from UK financial adviser Sesame Bankhall Group (SBG), which, according to the release, has more than 11,000 advisers in the country. Owler estimates …

The Universal Protocol (UP) Alliance, a coalition of blockchain firms including crypto exchange Bittrex and decentralized browser Brave, will launch its own euro-pegged stablecoin in April, according to a press release on March 28. The UP’s stablecoin, dubbed the Universal Euro (UPEUR) will be pegged to the euro on a 1:1 basis and will reportedly allow customers to earn up to 8 percent interest. The Universal Euro will purportedly be available directly on digital money platform Uphold and participating exchanges, as will be accepted by crypto custodian and device providers such as BitGo and Ledger. The new stablecoin targets residents …

Bitcoin (BTC) critic and general manager at the Bank for International Settlements (BIS) Agustin Carstens advised against the issuance of central bank digital currencies (CBDCs) in a speech in Dublin on March 22. Bloomberg reported on the speech the same day. Per the report, Carstens explained that a CBDC could facilitate a bank run, enabling people to move their funds from commercial banks to central bank accounts faster, thus destabilizing the system. Another issue that Carstens said arises with CBDC use, according to Bloomberg, is the different impact of interest rates on the public's demand for money. Carstens reportedly said …

The United Arab Emirates Banks Federation (UBF) and the Abu Dhabi Global Market (ADGM) hosted a joint forum on crypto assets and fintech, the UAE’s official news outlet Emirates News Agency reported on March 17. Per the report, the event was held in ADGM in collaboration with the UBF Compliance Committee and aimed to bring together industry specialists to discuss the challenges and opportunities facing fintech and crypto assets. At the start of the meeting, ADGM also shared its regulatory objectives and the main features of its crypto asset policy and surveillance tools. Moreover, the overall topics discussed at the …

The Association of German Private Banks (Bankenverband) foresees that a need for new regulation may arise from the emergence of distributed ledger technology (DLT)-based securities. The association expressed its concerns in a post on its official website on March 11, Cointelegraph auf Deutsche reported. Per the post, if securities are issued using new technologies, then there is a need for new safekeeping and settlements processes. According to Bankenverband, corporate actions and securities trading may also be subject to change because of DLT-based securities. The statement further explains that because of the changes that new technologies will create in business processes, …

Companies in the cryptocurrency industry still have trouble opening bank accounts, major financial publication Bloomberg reported on March 3. The report cites the complaint of Sam Bankman-Fried, CEO of quantitative crypto trading company Alameda Research, that “the standard answer of ‘just go to your local Chase branch’ doesn’t work in crypto.” Bankman-Fried also added that it is not illegal for banks to serve crypto businesses, but “it’s a massive compliance headache that they don’t want to put the resources in to solve.’’ Bloomberg also points out that, while the larger banks avoid serving companies involved in crypto, smaller ones are …

An upcoming crypto ecosystem has bold ambitions to offer “a much smoother way of moving fiat and cryptocurrency over the internet,” enabling people to pay in the fiat or crypto of their choice — whatever the requested currency — without fees. YPTOspace says it plans to develop a “first-of-its-kind platform that connects blockchain assets to real-world payment platforms,” all with the goal to become a one-stop-shop for payments and transactions for consumers and businesses. The startup argues that the current landscape is a “miserable experience” for consumers and impractical for daily usage. Yet, at the same time, mainstream adoption of …

Swiss bank Julius Baer plans to provide its client access to digital asset services, following a partnership with crypto bank startup Seba Crypto, a press release from Julius Baer reveals on Feb. 26. The partnership will come into effect when Seba is granted a securities dealer and banking license by the Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority, the press release notes. The Swiss bank will then begin offering digital asset storage, transaction and investment solutions in partnership with the crypto startup. The announcement also discloses that the banking giant has been a minority shareholder of Seba since last year. According to …

Liechtenstein-based Bank Frick is launching an institutional cryptocurrency trading platform subsidiary, DLT Markets, Cointelegraph auf Deutsch reported on Feb. 22. According to the bank’s announcement, DLT Markets will provide institutional investors “with fully regulated and secure multi-exchange access to the digital token asset class.” Edi Wögerer, CEO of Bank Frick, declared: “With our spin-off, we are offering institutional clients a unique combination of a fintech company and a bank regulated by the EU[.]” Roger Wurzel, who previously worked in business development at Bank Frick, has been appointed as the CEO of the new subsidiary, the press release reports. The bank’s …

Canadian banks have showed hesitation concerning the management of insolvent cryptocurrency exchange QuadrigaCX’s assets, national public broadcaster CBC reports on Feb. 22. QuadrigaCX has faced financial difficulty following the sudden death of its founder Gerry Cotten, who was the allegedly only one with access to the exchange’s cold wallets. As Cointelegraph reported earlier this week, QuadrigaCX has sent its remaining crypto assets from its hot wallets to Big Four auditing firm Ernst & Young, the court-appointed monitor overseeing the case. During Friday’s court hearing, lawyers for the Bank of Montreal and the auditing firm reportedly said that the banks are …