BNP Paribas stated that its test took place “late last year”, and was run on its Fund Link programme and on FundsDLT, a joint venture between three Luxemburg outfits.

Blockchains are the type of technology behind cryptocurrencies such as bitcoin, as well other forms of financial instruments and contracts.

Many in the industry think the use of blockchains will greatly reduce transaction costs, because financial firms will be able to reduce IT spending and the number of back office personnel (although positions are likely to be created).

In a 10 January 2018 press release, BNP Paribas said:

“The test demonstrated that Fund Link is able to connect with other blockchains, opening the door to a new model of interoperability and marks a key milestone for fund distribution. The transaction included each part of the fund trade process, from delivery of the order to the processing of the trade.”

Fund investors bought shares with real cash using blockchain technology for the first time last summer, also on the FundsDLT platform.

FundDLT is backed by the Fundsquare unit of the Luxembourg Stock Exchange, the Intech subsidiary of Post Group and KPMG Luxembourg.