Qatar National Bank Group (QNB), one of the Middle East’s biggest lenders, has started using JPMorgan’s blockchain platform, Kinexys, to handle corporate payments in Qatar, Bloomberg reported on Monday.
The move shifts away from the limits of traditional banking systems, where cross-border transactions are restricted to weekdays and can take days to finalize.
Speaking to Bloomberg, Kamel Moris, QNB’s executive vice president of transactional banking, called the change a “treasurer’s dream.” He noted that the blockchain-powered service runs around the clock, with payments now guaranteed in as little as two minutes.
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How Kinexys Works
Kinexys currently processes around $3 billion in transactions every day. While that figure is significant, it represents only a small portion compared to JPMorgan’s overall daily payment volume of roughly $10 trillion.
The system runs on a permissioned blockchain, allowing participating clients to transfer funds held on deposit at JPMorgan in real time. Unlike open, permissionless blockchains, this setup includes an access-control layer, ensuring that only authorized participants can carry out specific actions on the network.
