CHRISTCHURCH, New Zealand--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Stronghold today announced the company is working with IBM Blockchain World Wire, a real time global payments network for regulated financial institutions that is designed to optimize and accelerate foreign exchange and remittance services.

Founded in 2017, Stronghold is a financial services company that last year released Stronghold USD, a U.S. dollar token that’s 100% backed by funds on deposit with a qualified SEC custodian. Instead of using traditional banking intermediaries to transmit payments, IBM Blockchain World Wire is using Stronghold USD and other digital currencies to facilitate settlement.

“As a financial institution, we're in a unique position to innovate when it comes to enabling instant settlement for payments,” said Stronghold CEO and co-founder Tammy Camp. “Integrating our technology with IBM Blockchain World Wire represents a paradigm shift for payment processors.”

World Wire enables regulated financial institutions to expand their business ecosystems more rapidly, while improving financial inclusion for people around the world through highly secure, point-to-point payment transactions.

Unlike conventional correspondent banking, IBM Blockchain World Wire functions to reduce intermediaries and allows users to accelerate settlement times by transmitting monetary value in the form of digital assets known as cryptocurrencies or “stable coins.” This simplified approach is designed to improve operational efficiency and liquidity management, streamline payment reconciliation and reduce overall transaction costs for financial institutions.

“Blockchain provides a unique technology for payments,” said Jesse Lund, Global Vice President, IBM Blockchain. “Using World Wire, participants can discover each other’s capabilities, negotiate FX rates, and transfer value in real time. This reduces the need for intermediaries and long durations for clearing and settlements – which ultimately can get money into consumers’ hands faster and more cost-effectively.”

The World Wire network is poised to support more than 50 countries, with 20+ currencies and more than 30 banking endpoints, with the network of financial institutions actively growing.

“We’ve worked extensively with IBM to integrate our platform API with IBM Blockchain World Wire,” said Stronghold CTO and co-founder Sean Bennett. “Because our technology offers maximum transparency and minimal delays, today’s launch represents a significant step forward in distributed ledger technology.”

Co-founded in 2017 by CEO Tammy Camp and CTO Sean Bennett, Stronghold is a blockchain-enabled financial institution based in San Francisco. Using distributed ledger technology, the company provides a platform with tools that integrate with global financial systems to streamline real time payments while supporting regulatory compliance and improved liquidity.

For more information visit https://stronghold.co/

For more information about Stronghold USD: https://stronghold.co/stronghold-usd/

For more information about IBM Blockchain World Wire: https://www.ibm.com/blockchain/solutions/world-wire