Blockchain technology has been on the radar of PricewaterhouseCoopers for quite some time now. The company launched their Vulcan Digital Asset Services earlier this week, which can accommodate a multitude of digital transactions. Its primary use cases are compliance services and identity verification, both of which cater to the needs of banks and other financial institutions.
PwC Goes Big on Blockchain With Vulcan
It is positive to see PwC look at the blockchain as a technological concept that can be used for other purposes than transferring money. Vulcan, a cloud-based platform relying on distributed ledger technology, allows clients to offer new products. Form example, a bank or insurance company could provide a digital currency, or new digital services to all of their customers.
Additionally, all of these features are offered within a compliant ecosystem; that provides unprecedented transparency. The primary objective of this platform is to bring digital currencies and assets into a mainstream environment. Rather than focusing on internal financial operations, Vulcan is designed to offer features to mainstream users.
Some of the services provided include international payment processing, trading services, and digital asset wallets. Merchant services will be integrated into Vulcan at a later stage. An international banking group is currently piloting the platform, and one undisclosed airline is looking into Vulcan as well.
PWC Fintech Asia Leader John Shipman told the media:
“Traditional financial services companies have taken a cautious approach to digital currencies because of the perceived issues with trust and transparency. Vulcan came about because we were looking at these issues in relation to Bitcoin – the poster child of digital money – and in particular, how we can solve challenges relating to the issues of anonymity, and existing regulatory requirements, and recourse given its cross-border nature, function as a store of value and lack of central control.”
Many companies and institutions around the world are looking at integrating distributed ledger technology. Doing so, however, will require an integration layer of some sorts. Vulcan appears to be solving this potential issue, thanks to their key partnerships with other blockchain companies.
It is worth nothing PwC is also in talks with undisclosed governments to determine if Vulcan can enhance transparency for humanitarian aid programs. This seems to indicate PwC has taken the right approach by building an ecosystem that is fully regulatory compliant. Then again, it is still too early to tell, as Vulcan is still in its pre-launch phase right now.
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