Global share registrar Computershare and blockchain payment and settlement infrastructure provider SETL have demonstrated their blockchain capital market solution at the annual Investor and Analyst day.

The initiative aims to build an immutable securities register intended for the Australian market, reads the news release on Computershare’s website. The program is based on SETL’s working prototype.

While financial asset trade is rather seamless nowadays, the settlement process may take days, causing delays and market problems, reads the Investor and Analyst day briefing. The joint project is supposed to eliminate multiple intermediaries from the settlement process, making it simpler and quicker.

Ownership registration and securities settlement require a permissioned blockchain - this is the major difference between this project and the bitcoin blockchain, where all participants are equal. The issuer agent should retain their critical role in administering the blockchain, otherwise, the system will lack integrity, states Computershare.

Unlike many cryptocurrency blockchains, built on the principle of anonymity, this project implies the possibility of identification. Computershare names such advantages as the ability to interface with existing protocols and systems such as SWIFT and FIX, as well as great productivity (the ability to execute thousands of transactions per second, which is necessary in view of the present day’s market scale).

The companies divided their functionality within the joint project. SETL will provide blockchain technology while Computershare will bring together all the participants of the market – issuers, share owners, regulators, brokers and infrastructure developers – and will use its large experience to create a platform that suits everybody.

“Computershare is uniquely placed to appreciate how blockchain technology will be specifically applied in maintaining ownership registers,” says Paul Conn, president of Computershare's Global Capital Markets Group. “We chose to work with SETL because they have demonstrable working technology coupled with a deep bench of financial services expertise and experience.”

In SETL’s view, blockchain industry innovations do not only refer to technology but are connected with implementation and regulation issues as well, that is, they need to be correlated with the real market. This understanding is one of the major advantages of the company from the point of view of Computershare.

“We are excited to be working with Computershare on this joint initiative. They have an unrivalled position in understanding the needs and requirements of issuers and owners alike. Their focus on client servicing and their understanding of the lifecycle of securities issuance and ownership makes them natural leaders in this field,” stated Peter Randall, CEO of SETL.

Andrew Levich