Business consulting and technology services provider Synechron has released six blockchain applications designed to help financial institutions get up and running on a blockchain network or in a sandbox environment within weeks. The applications are cloud based and include solutions for Know Your Customer (KYC), global payments, trade finance, smart margin calls, insurance claims processing and mortgage financing and processing.
The initial applications are part of Synechron’s Blockchain Accelerator Program and more will be developed. Sandeep Kumar, managing director of capital markets and a blockchain specialist at Synechron, says the next applications could cover syndicated loans and OTC margins, although development will depend on client requirements.
He explains: “Some financial institutions want to do a lot with blockchain, but they don’t have the necessary technology depth and time. By building business applications on existing blockchain platforms, we can help firms cut down development time. Our focus is on what is useful for banks and we deliver working code.”
Synechron has built the applications on Hyperledger, Ripple, Ethereum and Eris blockchain platforms depending on the best match of application and third-party platform. It is also moving on to offer interoperability between platforms through a partnership with ConsenSys, a start-up providing developer and end user tools for blockchain ecosystems.
Kumar says: “We don’t expect there to be one blockchain platform in the market. Hyperledger will probably dominate financial services and small bank groups are likely to make Ethereum their platform of choice. We chose the best platforms to suit our application use cases and are working on interoperability between platforms.” As well as working on a clean interface between platforms, Synechron is building connectors to mainframes.
Synechron also provides custom blockchain development and some of its clients are going live with this. Others are expected to favour the accelerators, which are delivered as end-to-end solutions with business consulting services, blockchain technology, training and UX design that enables banks to customise applications to their needs.
