R3 Puts Blockchain KYC Tool To The Test With French Treasurers

Blockchain company R3 is putting its Know Your Customer (KYC) solution to the test with dozens of French companies and corporate treasurers, according to BTC Manager reports Wednesday (Dec. 5).

The French Association of Corporate Treasurers (AFTE) is supporting the pilot of R3’s KYC proof-of-concept solution by a group of French companies, including RCI Bank, Allianz France and BNP Paribas. According to reports, the companies participating in the testing operate in a range of industries, including financial services, automotive, retail and more.

R3’s technology is powered by its Corda blockchain technology, with a prototype developed by Synechron, allowing companies to manage their KYC processes in a streamlined, secure platform. For financial institutions, (FIs) the solution lets firms request data from their clients and enables FIs to grant or deny access to data stored on the platform.

According to R3 CEO David E. Rutter, the Corda platform “makes it possible for users to take full control of their data and be certain their personal information won’t be shared to other people without their explicit consent.”

Earlier this year, R3 revealed that a range of FIs and other entities across 19 countries would be testing the KYC solution, including Deutsche Bank and various regulators.

“As our corporate membership continues to grow, there has been increasing demand for blockchain-based KYC solutions,” said Rutter in a statement at the time. “Not only does this project demonstrate how blockchain can allow institutions to retain control of and manage their own identity, but it also validates the design choices we made in our approach to privacy on Corda.”

Other companies and financial institutions have begun exploring blockchain technology to manage their KYC processes beyond R3’s offering. In July, Barclays filed two patent applications with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, one of which was related to a blockchain tool to streamline KYC processes.

“Banks in particular may benefit [from] a significant reduction in the processing and financial costs of maintaining systems of record, and [by] providing the necessary scrutiny to regulators and others,” Barclays said in its filing.