Blockchain Romania Association: Banks are interested in blockchain benefits, we discussed regulations with BNR, BVB

Banks in Romania are interested in the benefits of blockchain technology, but we must also see the relevant regulatory framework and we had discussions in this regard with the National Bank of Romania (BNR) and the Bucharest Stock Exchange (BVB), president of the Blockchain Romania Association Armand Domuta stated on Friday on the sidelines of the Romania Blockchain Summit taking place at the Palace of Parliament. "The major use of blockchain is in finance. The bitcoin has proven that an autonomous financial system can exist without the need for a central bank or central authority to instil trust in the system. The blockchain per se can be applied in many industries, such as energy - for decentralized electricity trading. Then in logistics, in the medical field, so blockchain can find its place in almost all human activities. Most of the banks are looking at it. Some, like JP Morgan, have created their own currency, Santander is testing blockchain technologies. In Romania too, banks are interested in the benefits of this technology which can bring added value to customers, but we must see the regulatory framework. It needs to be updated to match the possibilities of state-of-the-art technology. We also had discussions with the National Bank of Romania and the Bucharest Stock Exchange on blockchain technology. I believe that once certain companies adopt the technology, the others will catch up," Domuta said. According to him, blockchain technology can generate trust among people without the need for central authorities to certify transactions. At the beginning of 2018, Ruxandra Avram, head of BNR's Payment and Settlement Systems Regulatory and Monitoring Department, said that the central bank doesn't believe in bitcoin very much and that "there has been no initiative to adopt Blockchain technology, because it doesn't sit very well with us." "The bitcoin technology virtually overlaps with the virtual currency. We, as a central bank, do not believe in bitcoin very much, because it's not something palpable. Personally, I see an overlap of the Blockchain technology and the virtual currency itself. Others say it's good to get the technology and use it, but for what? The European Central Bank also has reservations that translate to 'OK, but push it a little towards the anti-money laundering authorities that fight the financing of terrorism.' So, the message is, 'Let the central banks carry on with the models they know and which they can permanently control.' There is currently no initiative in the central bank to adopt these technologies because they don't sit very well with us. We'll wait and see. There are ongoing discussions on this subject," Avram said. AGERPRES (RO - author: Daniel Badea, editor: Mariana Nica; EN - author: Simona Klodnischi, editor: Rodica State)