Another 12 banks have joined the blockchain consortium led by startup R3 CEV. So the consortium now has 42 banks. The consortium is focused on establishing protocols and standards for using blockchain technologies in financial services.

‍

Nine banks collaborated (mid-September) to develop common blockchain technology standards by backing a blockchain startup called R3 CEV. Thirteen more banks joined by the end of September. Three more banks joined the R3CEV collaboration in October, taking the total count to 25; in November, five more banks joined hands to make the total number of banks in the R3CEV collaboration 30. Here are the 30 banks that are collaborating: Goldman Sachs, JP Morgan, Credit Suisse, Barclays, Commonwealth Bank of Australia, State Street, RBS, BBVA, UBS, BNY Mellon, Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group, Citigroup, Commerzbank, National Australia Bank, Royal Bank of Canada, SEB, Societe Generale, Toronto-Dominion Bank, Bank of America, Deutsche Bank, Morgan Stanley, HSBC, BNP Paribas, Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce, ING Bank, Macquarie Bank, Wells Fargo & Co, Mizuho Bank, Nordea Bank, and UniCredit.

‍

The latest bank entrants are BMO Financial Group, Danske Bank, Intesa Sanpaolo, Natixis, Nomura, Northern Trust, OP Financial Group, Banco Santander, Scotiabank, Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation, US Bancorp, and Westpac Banking Corporation. However, R3 said that the initial window for admittance of new bank members is now closed.

‍

David Rutter, CEO of R3, said in a statement, "Partnering with a broad range of institutions has always been central to our strategy of developing distributed ledger technologies that will genuinely benefit the financial services industry as a whole.

‍

"Securing the backing of 42 of the world's leading banks demonstrates the level of interest in our initiative, and we now look forward to exploring collaboration with nonbank institutions and expanding our already diverse group.

‍

"R3 has long believed that distributed ledger technology has the potential to impact the financial services sector the way the Internet changed media and entertainment. Yes, that's a big statement, but there is increasing evidence to support it.

‍

"When you look across the industry, the possible applications of these innovative solutions cut across asset classes, geographies, and market participants. Ultimately, these technologies will benefit not just financial services firms but their clients and end-users as well. We're very excited to be at the epicenter of this global evolution."

‍

R3 CEV will also work with other entities, including funds, exchanges, clearinghouses, standards bodies, and infrastructure companies in early 2016.

To learn about Prove’s identity solutions and how to accelerate revenue while mitigating fraud, schedule a demo today.