IBS Journal February 2016


Digital Asset Holdings gains $50m in funding round, teams up with ASX Limited for blockchain equities


Digital Asset Holdings hopes to use block- chain to make payments and settlement easier. The distributed ledger start-up led by


former JP Morgan chief Blythe Masters, has raised $50 million in a funding round. A number of leading companies invest-


ed in Digital Asset, including ABN Amro, Accenture, BNP Paribas, Citi and Broadridge Financial Solutions. The start-up is aiming to improve


efficiency, security, compliance and settlement speed through the use of distributed ledger technology (also known as blockchain).


Launched in 2015, the company has al- ready made moves in the industry, having


acquired blockchain groups Hyperledger, Bits of Proof and Blockstack.io to expand its portfolio. Masters, CEO of Digital Asset, called the


investments ‘a tremendous endorsement’. On the back of the funding the start-up will be expanding its board of directors to nine members. The firm has also announced plans to


open a London-based office to increase its presence in the UK and European markets.


ASX Jeeves ASX Limited has charged Digital Asset with the task of developing distributed ledger solutions in the Australian market. The initial focus will be on post-trade


Three Canadian credit unions ditch Acumen for DNA core banking system


Fiserv has signed three credit unions in British Columbia, Canada, for its DNA account processing platform. North Peace Savings and Credit Union


(NPSCU), Bulkley Valley Credit Union (BVCU) and Spruce Credit Union (SCU), will be aided by Fiserv partner Celero in the conversion of their systems. Celero will also take on a hosting


role for NPSCU and SCU, while Fiserv will support BVCU. NPSCU, based in Fort St John, manages


around $477 million in assets. BVCU, from Smithers, handles $320 million. SCU, based in Prince George and the smallest of the three in terms of assets, manages $132 million.


Vancouver, Canada © Grostskiii, Wikimedia


All three credit unions are moving from


the Acumen system. All three signed for Acumen back in 2008. Acumen, Fiserv’s former flagship core


banking offering for the credit union mar- ket in Canada and the US, was sunsetted a couple of years back, following Fiserv’s acquisition of rival vendor Open Solutions and its DNA platform. DNA has been offered to users of the old system as the replacement route. At that time, Fiserv said no end-date


for the system was arranged, adding ‘we are working with each credit union on a transition to the Fiserv product best suited for them’.


Alex Hamilton


services in the cash equites sector, follow- ing ASX’s announcement last year that it would be uprooting all of its main trading and post-trading platforms. The first phase of this project will run


until the end of 2016 and involves the replacement of ASX’s old systems. Phase two is expected to last six


months to a year and will result in the cre- ation of a solution ‘that demonstrates the benefits that distributed ledger technology could provide’. Elmer Funke Kupper, MD and CEO of


ASX, described the use of blockchain as ‘a once in a generation opportunity’ for the Australian equities market.


Alex Hamilton


In brief


Russia-based banking software ven- dor, Inversia, has secured a new core banking software customer. The bank will replace its legacy home-grown solution with Inversia’s Bank 21 Centu- ry offering. The bank is a small regional play-


er, Taganrogbank. Its main focus is on servicing local companies, but it also offers a range of products and servic- es to retail customers. Inversia will install a set of uni-


versal banking modules at Taganrog- bank, including retail, corporate, re- porting and internal accounting. Bank 21 Century is a popular


choice among small and mid-tier Rus- sian banks. Over the last year, the ven- dor has secured a good number of new clients, GT Bank, T-Finance, Trans- stroybank and SKIB Bank (formerly ICI- CI Bank Eurasia) among them. Inversia and other Russian bank-


ing software vendors are profiled in IBS’s annual Russian Vendors Sales League Table. The new Sales League Table will be published in March. Tanya Andreasyan


16


© IBS Intelligence 2016


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