Banks that dislike Bitcoin have applied for nearly 500 cryptocurrency patents

Banks and Bitcoin are strange bedfellows, but they do have something in common. To Bitcoin’s proponents, it’s the future of money. But right now, banks control access to “traditional” money, and Bitcoin still requires “traditional” money to buy. New patent data shows that if these oligarchs have their way, they will eventually have control over the digital currency space as well.

Banks are very bullish on blockchain  

Along with the traditional investment world, bankers missed out on Bitcoin. With a few exceptions, they didn’t believe that this ridiculous Internet currency peddled by anarchists and cypherpunks would be so popular. At first, they were right. But then they were wrong — because Bitcoin is really hot. This is a big moment. Now, the banking industry and Wall Street have loved Bitcoin so much that they have launched futures trading desks, acquired exchanges (such as Goldman Sachs-affiliated Circle’s acquisition of Poloniex), and even launched their own blockchains.

Financial firms file 150 cryptocurrency patents  

Banks are among the most prolific cryptocurrency patent filers, with Bank of America ranking first. This suggests that: first, the major banks are quietly paying attention to Bitcoin and its underlying technology, blockchain. Second, they may have missed the best time for Bitcoin, but they are determined to make up for it. Their current philosophy seems to be "if you can't beat them, cooperate." Of course, Bank of America's active and cheerful filing of cryptocurrency patent applications does not mean that it is about to launch its own BOA token.

Bitcoin Patent Report has compiled a list of the most prolific banking companies in the cryptocurrency space. Besides Bank of America, which tops the list, there are a few other notable names in the top ten. All are multinational: Toronto-Dominion Bank, for example, has 85,000 employees, and Fidelity has 45,000. These institutions can afford to assign a project team to work on blockchains and throw some money at it “just in case.” If they succeed in creating the next cutting-edge consensus algorithm, or designing a blockchain with super high throughput, the bank — thanks to the patents they applied for — stands to make a lot of money. If not, it’s just a small expense for them.

(Top 10 banks applying for cryptocurrency patents)

The actual number of bank patents is higher

While official data suggests that major financial institutions have filed around 150 cryptocurrency patents, in reality that number could be two or three times higher. Patent applications are generally not published within 18 months of the first filing. And that time has seen a large portion of the explosive growth and investment in the cryptocurrency space. In fact, the number of patents filed by the banking industry could be closer to 500. Paypal can be considered a cryptocurrency competitor in a broad sense, and this is a notable entry on the list. Paypal has filed a total of 11 patents, the most recent of which is for a patent for an "accelerated currency transaction system."

In the future of the Internet, everything is online and interconnected. The separation between traditional finance and cryptocurrency has gone from strong to weak, as innovators in both fields have crossed the divide and blurred the line between crypto and fiat. Add to that the IoT devices, which may eventually be connected to a quasi-blockchain that shares some common features with Bitcoin, and there will be explosive innovation in between. It is not surprising that banks are trying to put themselves at the core of innovation in order not to be eliminated by the times.

In recent weeks, Goldman Sachs, Bank of America and JPMorgan Chase have all spoken about the threat posed by cryptocurrencies in their annual filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. While Bitcoin will not replace the SWIFT banking system anytime soon, cryptocurrencies do offer a new economic system. Given the huge potential of blockchain technology and the cryptocurrencies associated with it, it is no wonder that major banks are quietly making plans. Patent data is just one of several indicators that the giants of the financial system are taking cryptocurrencies very seriously.