February 25, 2019

The Australian financial regulator is testing a blockchain to automate money transfer instructions.

Austrac, a government financial intelligence agency, is reportedly working with Swinburne University of Technology in Melbourne to test blockchain technology and smart contracts to help several actors automate their transfer instructions for international funds (IFTIs), representatives of Austrac told. The reporting organizations include banks, intermediaries and casinos, reports ZDNet.



Promotion of industry development
Work on the proof-of-concept (PoC) to automate IFTI reporting began in December 2018, an unnamed representative told ZDNet. The article also mentions the recently launched Blockchain Center for Excellence in Swinburne, which opened last month in partnership with Paris-based multinational consulting firm Capgemini.

The center, based on the campus of the University of Melbourne, will focus on promoting the development of the industry in the implementation of technologies, platforms, assets and systems on the blockchain. The center will work with Capgemini to jointly develop blockchain solutions from PoC to production.

Alexander Subich, deputy vice chancellor for research and development at Swinburne, told ZDNet:

“We see this technology as a key digital innovation platform supporting global supply chains, intellectual property and trade in various industries in the future.”

According to ZDNet, Swinburne also collaborated with ArtChain Global in early 2018 to implement blockchain and IoT technologies in the global art trade industry.

As previously reported, Austrac launched a licensing system for domestic cryptocurrency exchanges in April 2018, which requires registration operators to comply with the rules for combating money laundering and “know your customer” rules.