Building on their partnership and common conviction that blockchain will profoundly impact all industries including the financial sector, the European Investment Bank (EIB) – the financing institution of the European Union – together with Telindus (digital expert and provider of ICT, fintech and telecom solutions and services) for technical support, held a two-day Blockchain Challenge gathering 56 coders (12 teams) from 15 countries at its Luxembourg headquarters.
The exercise was the first of its kind for the EIB and for the treasurers and representatives of more than 20 financial institutions which joined the event to interact with the coders while holding their annual forum – this year on the topic of the blockchain.
Is blockchain a new fashion or a real disruption, an evolution or a revolution in the way the banking industry operates? What are the challenges at stake for the regulators, the infrastructure, the industry and the employees? The European Investment Bank, a strong supporter of innovation, addressed these themes over two days, combining a hard challenge for the coders with its annual conference for European bankers dedicated to treasury issues.
“We are at the beginning of a new era and blockchain will be a game changer. There will be major gains from the use of new technologies such as blockchain, generated from the simplification and streamlining of existing financial processes. The new perspectives opened up by digitalisation and Distributed Ledger Technology must be assessed and we must all be ready to make use of them and embark on this new venture. As the EU’s financial arm, we decided to be on the active side, learn by experience and make things happen, to be a facilitator and join with our banking partners to pave the way for tomorrow’s financial industry,” said EIB Vice-President Alexander Stubb.
The EIB had invited its 25 main counterparties in the banking sector to its annual forum dedicated to treasury issues with a specific objective this year: to find out what blockchain is and what it can bring to their business. While the conference was running, the coders were in the adjacent room with a 48-hour challenge: using blockchain technologies to improve the transaction process of commercial paper – a short-term financing instrument (debt securities issued on the money market) that is used worldwide in treasury operations and still relies on an ‘archaic’ and complex process.
For the EIB, the challenge was to explore the potential of blockchain for such an instrument and demonstrate to the participants of the seminars the potential benefits of blockchain technology for their own activity. The bankers, treasurers, and lawyers participated in regular exchanges with the coders, providing expert information on the financial processes. According to the coders, that was key to the success of the challenge and made it a unique event.
On November 7, 2018 blockchain technology will be discussed at the Blockchain for Development forum. The forum will bring some of today’s most compelling and sought after thought-speakers, representing the International Organizations, IT and Blockchain specialists as they share their insight on utilizing Blockchain and DLT to transform the International Development.
Original source: EIB
Published on 10 August 2018
