UPDATE (17th December 14:25 BST): This article has been updated with additional information.
Twelve additional banks have joined the blockchain consortium led by startup R3CEV.
New entrants to the group include Banco Santander, Danske Bank, Intesa Sanpaolo, Natixis, Nomura, Northern Trust, OP Financial Group, Scotiabank, Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation, US Bancorp, Westpac Banking Corporation and BMO Financial Group.
The consortium, announced in September, is focused on proof-of-concept experimentation and the development of standards for blockchain tech. Its creation followed a series of workshops and meetings conducted with banks, some of which later signed on to the group.
The consortiumâs membership has grown since the first nine members were announced in the fall. In the past few months, 33 more banks have joined the initiative. With the new entrants, the total number of banks involved with the consortium rises to 42.
R3 indicated that its âinitial windowâ for membership into the consortium has closed, but said that in 2016 it will seek to work with non-bank financial institutions and groups.
The firm struck a positive tone, pointing to broadening support for the technology among the worldâs banks, some of which are conducting their own investigations in tandem with the consortiumâs work.
R3 CEO David Rutter said that the possible applications of these its solutions will âcut across asset classes, geographies and market participantsâ.
He added in a statement:
âUltimately, these technologies will benefit not just financial services firms, but their clients and end-users as well. Weâre very excited to be at the forefront of this global evolution.â
When reached for comment, Banco Santander said that the organization presents an opportunity âto work together in a collaborative way in order to build new financial technology platforms based on crypto currencies and distributed ledger techniquesâ.
âSantander is keen to contribute to this collaborative effort to shape the new rails upon which the financial industry will operate in the future,â it said.
Building blocks image via Shutterstock
