AMINA Bank AG and Crypto Finance Group Advance Payment Technology
AMINA Bank AG (“AMINA”) and Crypto Finance Group, along with other banking collaborators, have successfully carried out a groundbreaking pilot program that illustrates the potential of distributed ledger technology (DLT) to enhance cross-border, cross-currency, and point-of-sale transactions. This pilot, executed on the Google Cloud Universal Ledger platform (GCUL), facilitates instant, round-the-clock fiat currency settlements among Swiss-regulated financial entities while adhering to the security and compliance requirements of conventional banking systems. The initiative addresses significant inefficiencies prevalent in today’s global payment frameworks, where cross-border transactions often take several days to finalize and are accompanied by high costs. By utilizing DLT as the foundational technology while keeping traditional commercial bank money intact, this pilot demonstrates a pathway for modernizing payments without the need to establish new digital currencies or disrupt existing regulatory systems.
Innovating Within Established Banking Structures
Franz Bergmueller, CEO of AMINA Bank, remarked, “The Google Cloud’s GCUL exemplifies that innovation can coexist with stability. This pilot has allowed us to achieve near-instantaneous, compliant settlements within the current banking ecosystem. AMINA’s global network and partnerships position us to scale this pilot internationally, showcasing DLT’s transformative potential for the financial sector.” Stijn Vander Straeten, CEO of Crypto Finance Group, added, “This pilot illustrates our joint efforts to facilitate the next generation of financial markets. As the Currency Operator for this initiative, we are laying a trustworthy groundwork for digital payments and tokenized assets. Its success further solidifies Switzerland’s reputation as a prominent center for digital financial innovation.”
A Collaborative Approach to Financial Infrastructure
In this pilot initiative, Crypto Finance Group operated as the appointed Currency Operator, ensuring that transaction protocols were well-defined and that all participants adhered to established processes on GCUL. The organization played a key role in onboarding participating banks and ensuring compliance with the pilot’s framework, while payment execution and settlement were managed directly by the involved parties. AMINA Bank and other institutions integrated the technology into their core banking systems, providing select clients with nearly instantaneous settlement capabilities without disrupting existing operations. Matt Renner, President and Chief Revenue Officer of Google Cloud, expressed pride in supporting Switzerland’s vision for advanced financial infrastructure, stating, “Cloud-native technology has the potential to revolutionize financial services while adhering to regulatory mandates. The pilot by AMINA Bank and Crypto Finance illustrates how state-of-the-art technology can facilitate secure, compliant payments that occur almost instantaneously.”
Future Prospects for Payment Systems
The high-performance DLT utilized by GCUL allows for real-time transactions for traditional currencies and assets, seamlessly integrating with existing banking workflows. This model empowers financial institutions to develop and deploy innovative services for clients on Google’s secure and scalable infrastructure, without affecting their deposit reserves or lending capabilities. The successful execution of this pilot sets the stage for wider adoption. The next steps will involve expanding the platform by incorporating additional financial institutions, transitioning from controlled testing to active operations, and ultimately introducing enhanced features, including cross-border payments and point-of-sale solutions for consumers.
