The SWIFT institute in Belgium will pay 15 thousand euros for a detailed prediction of the blockchain technology development.

According to the “Call for Proposals”, the institute is interested in the “research on the potential development of blockchain technology for use in the securities markets and the disruptive impact of such a technology on the existing securities transaction ecosystem”.

In the foremore, the experts of the institute mention that some companies including The New York Stock Exchange are experimenting with the public ledger technology.

“Proponents of blockchain say that distributed ledger transactions can be irrevocable, with clearing and settlement nearly instantaneous. Accuracy of transaction data is increased, whilst cost and settlement risk are reduced”.

SWIFT experts think that there are certain problems that may slow down the blockchain technology development. “Bitcoin today runs primarily on desktop computers. Presumably to cater for the daily volume of securities transactions globally, high-end servers (super computers) would need to be in place,” says the Institute.

To receive the grant, a proposal should address 6 questions. Key questions to be addressed are the issues of the blockchain securities transactions, the impact of the blockchain on current network of intermediaries and technological requirements for the securities transactions using the blockchain. The deadline is 15 of August.

“A grant of EUR 15,000 will be awarded to the author of the selected proposal. 50% will be paid immediately; the remaining 50% will be paid on acceptance of a working paper.”

The SWIFT Institute is the research organisation founded in 2012. It fosters independent research on the transaction banking by giving grants and providing access to data. SWIFT funds and provides secretariat services to the SWIFT Institute, which is headquartered in La Hulpe, Belgium.

The institute is not the only organisation that invests in the studies of the blockchain banking. As CoinFox reported earlier, BNP Paribas bank recently analysed two possible ways of the blockchain technology development. One of those ways implies “privatisation” of the public ledger by the world’s biggest banks.

Roman Korizky