Key highlights:
- Nasdaq will be using R3’s Corda blockchain platform
- Nasdaq wants to provide solutions to financial institutions that would allow them to issue and trade tokens
- The company has been involved with blockchain tech even before the R3 partnership
Stock exchange operator Nasdaq has partnered with enterprise blockchain development firm R3 to work on solutions for digital asset marketplaces. Nasdaq’s Market Technology division will be using R3’s flagship Corda blockchain platform to help build trading platforms for digital assets.
Johan Toll, Nasdaq’s head of digital assets, stated that Nasdaq plans to build marketplaces that enable the issuance and trading of blockchain-based tokens:
»Overall, our goal is to provide financial institutions with an easily accessible, complete solution to issue tokens and build trusted, digital asset marketplaces designed for high security for trading and settling them within an ecosystem that supports growing volumes, as well as business and product development.«
Johan Toll also said that its partnership with R3 is not exclusive, which means that the company will be able to also leverage enterprise blockchain solutions from other providers, such as Symbiont. Nasdaq led a $20 million investment round in Symbiont in 2019.
The benefits of blockchain technology
According to Toll, blockchain technology and digital assets can open up access to markets, facilitate price discovery, and expand markets to new product categories. He added that blockchain technology is already gaining traction by helping automate processes in OTC markets and enabling the tracking of assets in numerous industries including healthcare and logistics.
He concluded that we are likely to see a variety of different blockchain technologies moving forward, but expects consolidation in the long term:
“Many different networks will be created across the globe, built on an array of distributed ledger technologies. Again, standards are key, and once interoperability is achieved, we will likely see some consolidation over the longer term.”
Nasdaq has been involved with blockchain technology for quite some time now – the company’s CEO Adena Friedman is a known proponent of blockchain and has even spoken about cryptocurrencies in somewhat favorable terms.
There have also been reports of Nasdaq launching a Bitcoin futures product, although this hasn’t materialized so far. Meanwhile, Nasdaq’s rival Intercontinental Exchange, the operator of the New York Stock Exchange, is offering Bitcoin futures through Bakkt, a company in which it has a majority stake.
