The two banks also secure plans to allow the platform to accommodate central bank digital currencies in the future.
Earlier, Crédit Agricole CIB and SEB jointly announced the launch of a new blockchain-based public platform, so|bond. According to the advertisement, the platform will focus on improving the efficiency of digital bond issuance, albeit with a small sustainability twist. Meaning, while the network isn’t exactly obsessed with green bonds, it still aspires to go green in its operations.
To this end, the platform will seek to reward participants who improve their environmental footprint. It will accomplish this using a validation protocol it calls “Climate Awareness Proof,” which is tailored in a way that rewards node operators with the Climate Awareness Coin Token for minimizing their node’s carbon footprint.
So|bond was launched in collaboration with IT services firm Finaxys. The platform will measure the environmental footprint as proposed by the APL Data Center methodology that will be applied by SGS. Interestingly, so|bond is the first blockchain to use the Proof of Climate Awareness protocol.
Romaric Rollet, Director of Innovation and Digital Transformation at Crédit Agricole CIB, has expressed his enthusiasm for the newly launched platform. He says that he is aligned with the objectives of the company’s Social Project, which is to guarantee green and sustainable finance.
SEB and Crédit Agricole CIB join long list of banks to explore blockchain bonds
In the meantime, it’s worth noting that this partnership is the latest in a long line of similar ones in recent times. This is because blockchain corporate bond issuance is gradually becoming a trend among major financial institutions.
Goldman Sachs and HSBC recently launched digital asset and bond issuance platforms. And because of that, they joined the likes of Société Générale, Santander and ABN Amro that have moved ahead in the space. Similarly, the Swiss bank UBS has also launched what has been called the largest digital bond ever.
Therefore, SEB is attaching great importance to the launch. According to SSA DCM’s head of SEB, Anna Sjulander, the bank is ready to seize the opportunity to learn about fast, transparent and simplified transactions. She also said:
“It will allow us to gain insight into what the innovative digital asset space means for the financial services industry.”
The two banks also secure plans to allow the platform to accommodate central bank digital currencies in the future. According to them, this will ultimately open them up to trade beyond bonds and expand into other asset classes.
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Mayowa is a crypto enthusiast/writer whose conversational nature is quite evident in his writing style. He strongly believes in the potential of digital assets and takes every opportunity to reiterate it. He is a reader, a researcher, an astute speaker, and also a budding entrepreneur. Away from cryptocurrency, however, Mayowa’s imagined distractions include soccer or discussions of world politics.
