By Rose Oswald Poels, WBA president and CEO
As I reported back in August, WBA is excited to join with 41 other state bankers associations from across the country to form the BankChain Alliance, a highly secure network on a common banking platform (blockchain) that allows financial institutions to access programmable (or smart) payments within a secure and regulated environment, enabling both tokenized deposits and stablecoins. WBA believes it is important to actively engage in this initiative created and owned by the banking industry to proactively position our industry as the future of commerce and banking continues to evolve in the digital payments space.
I am excited to share that BankChain Alliance is now open for banks to consider joining as members. Membership dues pricing is based on bank asset size, broken out into three tiers. Inaugural members will also be eligible for first right of refusal to participate in future investment opportunities. It is important to note that membership dues are separate from any potential ownership in the platform. Membership is also not exclusive, meaning that your bank could still choose to participate with other similar platforms in addition to this one.
The BankChain Alliance website has been updated with a membership section that contains features such as a membership dues calculator and an online version of the membership form that can be completed and submitted directly to them. Access to this can be found at https://www.bankchainalliance.com/membership. While participation in the working groups is currently closed, you are able to share your interest in serving on a committee as future openings arise. There will also be other opportunities for bankers to engage, share feedback, and help guide the Alliance’s next phase.
BankChain Alliance is nearing the end of its RFP process to select the right technology partner and platform. The RFP was built around key principles such as fairness for banks of all sizes, being accretive by nature, creating value for participating banks, providing bank-grade security, and innovation that unlocks new ideas and simplicity to enable easy integration. As I learn of new updates on this and other matters, I will share that information out with the membership.
I welcome your feedback, questions, and comments on this rapidly developing space. WBA is excited to be part of this digital payments journey alongside our members!
