PayPal trying to Patent Next-Generation Cryptocurrency Processing System
PayPal Holdings (NASDAQ: PYPL) has filed a patent application for a superfast cryptocurrency payment-processing system designed to connect merchants and consumers.
U.S. Patent Application 20180060860 filed on August 30, 2016, is for an “Expedited Virtual Currency Transaction System,” Captain Altcoin reported. The system is supposed to speed up cryptocurrency transactions and ensure security with “private keys.”
“Expedited virtual currency transactions are provided by identifying a first user primary wallet associated with a virtual currency and including a first user primary wallet private key,” the application on file with the U.S. Patent Office states.
“First user secondary wallets are created that each include a respective first user secondary wallet private key, and a respective virtual currency transaction is performed using the first user primary wallet private key to transfer predefined amounts of the virtual currency from the first user primary wallet to each of the first user secondary wallets such that first user secondary wallets are provided with different predefined amounts of the virtual currency,” is how the application describes the process.
The inventors of the system are identified as Cheng Tian and Sandy Lynn Godsey of San Jose, California. The patent application was apparently revealed to the public on March 1, 2018.
Is PayPal Planning to add Cryptocurrency to its Ecosystem?
It sounds as if PayPal is seeking ways of adding cryptocurrency to its popular digital wallet and peer-to-peer (P2P) payment solution Venmo. Present day blockchain technologies such as Ethereum (ETH) and Bitcoin (BTC) are not fast enough to operate effectively with systems like PayPal.
Bitcoin can only handle around three to four transactions a second or 180 to 240 transactions a minute with present-day technology. Ethereum is a little faster it can handle 20 transactions a second or 1,200 transactions a minute.
PayPal can handle up to 193 transactions a second; or 11,760 transactions a minute in 2016, Altcoin Today reported. There is also evidence that PayPal’s system can run a lot faster if needed the digital-wallet company claims to have processed 450 transactions a second or 27,000 transactions a minute on Cyber Monday 2015.
The only way PayPal would economically be able to take cryptocurrency is if its processing was as fast as its existing system. PayPal’s existing ecosystem includes its flagship digital wallet, payment processor Braintree, Venmo, and lending services. Braintree is currently working with Coinbase one of the most popular cryptocurrency wallets.
It is not clear exactly what this patent would do or what PayPal plans to do with it. Large companies like PayPal often buy patents and do little or nothing with them.
ING and Credit Suisse Moved £25 million on Blockchain Platform
Two of the world’s largest financial services companies; the Dutch ING Group (NYSE: ING) and Credit Suisse Group DG (NYSE: CS) moved £25 million ($30.82 million) in securities through the R3 Corda blockchain platform on March 1, 2018, Captain Alctoin reported.
The Dutch and German government securities were transferred using HQLAx Digital Collateral Records (DCRs) over the R3 Corda platform, a Credit Suisse press release indicates. The DCRs are apparently smart contracts designed for the transfer of securities. The HQLAx is a lending application that operates as a decentralized application (DApp) on the Corda platform.
The plan for HQLAx is to use it move baskets of securities between institutions. Such a transaction is the first step in building a global marketplace for blockchain based securities, and a global blockchain for securities transfer. One obvious use for it would be to issue, sell, and trade government bonds based on the DCRs technology and HQLAx. This would make it easier and faster for governments to issue debt and borrow money.
Blockchain can Revolutionize Collateral Lending
“The success of this first live transaction speaks to the potential for blockchain technology to help improve collateral fluidity by creating a more efficient, transparent, and cost-effective marketplace for liquidity transfers,” Romain Dumas; the Head of Rates Repo and Collateral Optimization at Credit Suisse Securities (Europe) Limited, said.
“Collateral lending is a great example of a process that can be revolutionized by blockchain technology, and this live trade between two major global banks marks a significant milestone for the market,” David E. Rutter; the CEO of R3, commented.
Coda was designed as a “Distributed Ledger for Recording and Managing Financial Agreements.” It looks as if that technology might be living up to its promise and the future of banking is on the blockchain.
R3 is now offering Coda training to financial institutions around the world. It looks as if widespread the widespread use of blockchain in the securities markets is beginning.
