Rabobank Trials Ethereum Technology, IB Times Reports

Dutch bank Rabobank, also known as Rabo Bank, is experimenting with Ethereum technology through its smart cash wallet project, IB Times reported.

The news was revealed by two senior executives of Rabobank, Steenvorden and Han Veldwijk in an interview with IB Times.

“We can’t predict which platform will stand out, and we chose Ethereum from many platforms because the Ethereum platform saves us a lot of programming work.”

Veldwijk added:

“To understand the development trend of blockchain applications, we need to keep an eye on it and participate in it, so we will cooperate with some start-ups. In addition to blockchain, we are also looking for pilot projects of side chains and private chains to understand how to better use blockchain technology. So SHIFT is a flexible platform for us to experiment with this technology, such as can we make money programmable? Can we use smart contracts? ”

SHIFT is a new project of the bank, which will be launched next month. SHIFT is an application similar to a smart cash wallet.

Steenvoorden says:

“We have some of the best experts in the payments space, and we’re working with startups to research this new technology, which is not well known.”

“We are also in close contact with some of the legislators in the Netherlands and Europe. In fact, it is difficult for us to explain what we are doing to our own risk assessors and compliance personnel.”

Steenvoorden, an expert in security, knew that the kind of exploit used by banks could undermine blockchain technology:

"Because I come from a technical background and have studied a lot of different technologies, I'm not sure if the code is unbreakable, so we should test it and verify it ourselves."

In fact, Steenvoorden and his team have done a good job in educating the bank’s executives about distributed ledgers. Steenvoorden recalled the first time they introduced Ripple’s technology to the bank’s advantages in disrupting international payments:

"At the time, the CEO and members of the board of directors were present. They all agreed with what I said and understood that this technology could be used in the payment field, but it would take some time to adapt."

Veldwijk represented Rabobank at the Startupbootcamp Fintech finals in London, where a blockchain startup Tradle was among the finalists. The company offers a KYC (know your customer) verification system based on blockchain technology.

Steenvoorden said that Rabobank has always been committed to innovation:

“We have a long history of innovation, Rabobank is one of the top ten Internet sites in the Netherlands and our online payment method iDeal has become the standard for online payments in the Netherlands.”

Steenvoorden also admitted that Rabobank had some failures in the process of innovation, such as launching its own telecommunications provider eight years ago, which ended in failure.

“That’s why we’re setting up an internal accelerator to support fresh ideas from our bank employees around the world. We’ll provide them with funding, training, and three months of C-level support. Because we need more programs like SHIFT, we need more investment projects to meet the needs of different customer groups.”