Over the past couple of years, a number of major tech firms and financial giants have shown an active interest in the blockchain technology. The latest name to join the blockchain bandwagon is accounting and auditing giant PricewaterhouseCoopers, (PwC) - which has now made its first official investment into the blockchain sector as PwC Hong Kong and PwC Singapore have each acquired a minority stake in China based blockchain platform, VeChain.
PwC has invested in VeChain particularly for their anti-counterfeit tech. PwC intends to integrate VeChain’s technology on their platform, which is likely to involve the use of VeChain tokens for transactions. The VeChain system has been used by a number of other firms in the past as well.
VeChain, which has largely been a China-focused company gets a number of benefits with this deal. With a financial powerhouse such as PwC making use of PwC’s technology, VeChain will get a boost in its credibility, as well as a foothold in the East Asian markets of Hong Kong and Singapore. While the VeChain platform has caught the attention of PwC, the VeChain cryptocurrency token too is a solid performer in the markets - currently ranked 15th in terms of market capitalization.
Commenting on this partnership between VeChain and PwC, Raymund Chao, PwC Asia Pacific and Greater China Chairman said that this is an important and strategic collaboration and this will help them offer innovative services to their clients. Raymond added:
“We are glad to establish a deeper relationship with VeChain, which aims to build a trusted and distributed business ecosystem to help address long-standing challenges in supply chain management, food trust and anti-counterfeiting areas. VeChain’s mission aligns with PwC’s purpose of solving important problems and building trust in society,”
China has been quite strict on cryptocurrency platforms of late - and has banned all cryptocurrency exchanges and trading platforms in the nation. However, the country has been quite committed when it comes to the development of the blockchain technology. A number of blockchain parks have opened up in China of late - and Venture Capital firms from around the world are looking at this development.
Blockchain in Finance:
PwC’s nod of approval is of great significance and will help VeChain, as well as the blockchain tech at large, develop further. PwC was one of the first few financial heavyweights to accept Bitcoin for settling client invoices.
Interestingly, PwC isn’t the first name to tap on the blockchain sector as KPMG, another international accounting giant has expressed interest in the technology. KPMG joined the Wall Street Blockchain Alliance last November and now aims at adopting this technology for offering innovative services for their clients.
In addition to these firms, a number of banks around the world have also begun to give importance to the blockchain and cryptocurrency technologies. Bank of America recently introduced a patent for storing data over the blockchain networks. Indian banking giant ICICI bank has also been working on developing a blockchain platform with over 250 members on board. The blockchain technology is indeed a major innovative force in the global Fin-Tech sector!