The banking world attempts to improve domestic and international payments by incorporating new technologies that will make that process a lot easier. Project Khoka, organized by the South African Reserve Bank, relies on an Ethereum-based interbank payment platform for this specific purpose.
Project Khoka Taps Blockchain Technology
Improving interbank transactions has been an ongoing struggle. Despite improvements in finance, such transfers can still take a business day or longer to settle. In this day and age, that is unacceptably slow for most consumers. The South African Reserve Bank strives to make positive changes in this regard. Its latest cryptocurrency-oriented trial has completed successfully.
Project Khoka is an Ethereum-based platform, Techzim explains. ConsenSys, a blockchain company, developed this technology under the Quorom label. All participants in this trial set up a network node on the Project Khoka network. Multiple server types were used, including AWS and Microsoft Azure.
The main objective of this project is to replicate SAMOS. The South African Multiple Gross Operation Settlement System needs a big overhaul. Combining it with distributed ledger technology can help speed up transactions. An additional benefit comes in the form of reducing overhead costs.
A Positive Trial
Project Khoka is made possible with the help of Discovery, Nedbank, FirstRand, and five other banks. It appears this trial has been conducted successfully. No further specific information was released regarding commercialization of the technology. Since no actual transactions took place, further testing seems warranted.
Thanks to this trial, the future of cryptocurrency regulation looks brighter in South Africa. Similar to most countries, there is no official regulation in place at this time. The South African Reserve Bank has voiced concerns regarding Bitcoin in the past. At the same time, they seem to favor its underlying technology. That can have many interesting consequences for the future.
The open-minded approach by SARB is a positive sign. Especially when compared to Zimbabwe’s central bank, which has officially banned cryptocurrencies. South Africa is home to multiple Bitcoin ATMs. These machines can be found in Johannesburg, Nelspruit, and Pretoria. With proper regulatory measures in price, more legitimacy will be offered to the cryptocurrency industry in the country.
Does the success of Project Khoka mean that more banks will embrace blockchain technology? Let us know in the comments below.
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