Swiss bank UBS tests blockchain for cross-border payments with digital cash

UBS has successfully piloted its blockchain-based payment system to improve the efficiency of cross-border transactions.

Multinational investment giant UBS has completed the pilot study of its blockchain-based payment system called “UBS Digital Cash”, which aims to increase the efficiency of cross-border transactions.

The Zurich-headquartered bank said in a Nov. 7 press release that the case, involving multinational customers and banks, involved both domestic payments within Switzerland and cross-border transactions in U.S. dollars, Swiss francs, euros and Chinese yuan.

The system uses a private blockchain network called “UBD Digital Cash” that only authorized customers can access, and transactions are made through smart contracts that are automatically executed when predefined conditions are met.

“Blockchain-based payment solutions for cross-border payments are a strategic focus for UBS.”

Andy Kollegger, Head of Corporate and Multinational Banking at UBS

Commenting on this milestone, UBS head of digital assets Xiaonan Zou said the bank sees interoperability between UBS Digital Cash and other digital cash initiatives as “key for the financial industry”. The bank says the latest initiative complements UBS’s involvement in a wide range of market initiatives, citing the Swiss National Bank-led Helvetia project for a true wholesale Swiss franc Central Bank Digital Currency and the Bank-led Agorá project. International Settlements.

The pilot comes shortly after UBS launched the UBS USD Money Market Investment Fund Token, the first tokenized investment fund on Ethereum, targeting authorized distribution partners in Singapore.