Two UK banks, Barclays and RBS to leverage R3’s real estate blockchain trial

Barclays Bank and Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS), two of the leading commercial banks in the United Kingdom are reported to be joining hands in R3 for a blockchain trial aimed at streamlining real estate purchases. A total of 40 participants have signed up for the trial that was made possible using a tool developed by Instant Property Network (IPN). IPN is a startup company that utilizes the blockchain platform provided by R3’s Corda.

According to a report published on Bloomberg, leveraging the blockchain technology for real estate exchange around the world could culminate in savings of about $160 billion. However, some banks, which were skeptical at first are currently warming up to the idea.

The director for mortgage innovation at RBS Dan Salmons speaking to Bloomberg said:

“We are near the end of the hype cycle and have not found a great consumer solution for distributed ledger technology until now.” Furthermore, Property is an industry that is ripe for this, where a complex difficult process for customers could be made cheaper and more transparent.’’

The head of the group innovation office at Barclay’s New York outpost expressed his positive opinion saying:

“When a person wants to purchase a house, the process encompasses a whole host of different interactions with different businesses and governmental entities that can be uncomfortable and drawn out.”