The eighth larges­t sharem­arket in the world will replac­e its curren­t system with the distri­buted ledger techno­logyAustralia’s main stock exchange has said it will use blockchain, the technology behind cryptocurrency bitcoin, to process its equities transactions in a shift touted as a world-first for a major financial institution. The Australian Securities Exchange (ASX), the eighth-largest sharemarket in the world, will replace its current system CHESS with the distributed ledger technology to manage the clearing and settlement for buying and selling stocks. ASX chief executive Dominic Stevens said the move “will put Australia at the forefront of innovation in financial markets”, in a statement late Thursday. “After so much hype surrounding distributed ledger technology, today’s announcement delivers the first meaningful proof that the technology can live up to its potential,” Digital Asset chief executive Blythe Masters said in a statement. He added that the switch to blockchain showed it “can meet the requirements of mission-critical financial infrastructure”.

Source: The Express Tribune December 08, 2017 08:15 UTC