BANGALORE, October 18, 2016 /PRNewswire/ --

Emirates NBD is the First in UAE and ICICI Bank is the First Bank in India to Pilot Blockchain-based Network for International Remittances and Trade Finance

EdgeVerve Systems, a wholly owned product subsidiary of Infosys (NYSE: INFY), Emirates NBD, the leading banking group in Middle East and ICICI Bank Limited, India's largest private sector bank by consolidated assets, today announced the pilot launch of blockchain network for international remittances and trade finance. Both, Emirates NBD and ICICI Bank run Finacle solutions suite and have leveraged the blockchain framework to route business transaction between the two entities for remittances and trade finance business.

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Using the EdgeVerve Blockchain Framework for Financial Services, the network was successfully piloted on the UAE-India remittance corridor, one of the busiest corridors for both banks. According to the World Bank, this corridor is the largest receiver of remittances with a share of close to 70 Billion USD out of the 580+ Billion USD world over.

With this, Emirates NBD became the first bank in UAE and ICICI Bank, the first bank in India, to pilot a blockchain-based network for financial services. The exercise was started eight weeks ago and additional use cases are being explored for the pilot. Both financial institutions have started the process towards a network consortium for further participation by interested member banks to expand the transaction network.

Considering its strong presence in the financial industry through Finacle suite of solutions, Emirates NBD and ICICI Bank chose to partner with EdgeVerve for the pilot. This framework is a permissioned asset-agnostic ledger, designed specifically for the banking sector. Blockchain-based applications built on this framework, can deliver enhanced automation across inter-organizational processes, transactional security and accuracy at a significantly lower cost.

Highlights:

• With the blockchain network in place, both banks expect automation of inter-bank processes through smart contracts, secure digital exchange of documents and real-time monitoring of positions through integrated dashboards. Consequently, this will lead to significant cost savings for the business
• As part of this pilot, remittances, trade finance purchase order and invoice financing processes were executed on the blockchain network. It achieved a near real-time transfer of invoices and purchase orders in a transparent and secure manner
• The blockchain network has also been integrated with the Finacle Universal Banking Suite and other host systems within the application ecosystem in both banks
• The network model has been designed to be least disruptive to existing systems and processes in banks. This reduces complexity as it allows banks to seamlessly plug in their systems and processes to work with blockchain powered networks

Quotes: 

Dr. Vishal Sikka, Chief Executive Officer & Managing Director, Infosys  

"Blockchain technology offers unprecedented opportunities to transform banking as we know it. Like any innovative technology, the usage of blockchain-based applications will gradually increase from early adopters to others who will join based on proven and tangible benefits. We are delighted to partner with ICICI Bank and Emirates NBD, who are innovation leaders in their respective regions. With this pilot, we are clearly a step closer to see mainstream adoption of blockchain-based applications. We look forward to further collaborations with our clients and other banks to create a blockchain-powered consortium in the financial services industry."

His Highness Shaikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum, Chairman, Emirates NBD: 

"Our pilot project with Infosys Finance and ICICI bank, a first for the banking sector in the UAE, demonstrates blockchain's immense potential to change how organizations and governments conduct business. We look forward to further collaboration with the public sector and our private peers to further adoption of this technology in the UAE."

Ms. Chanda Kochhar, Managing Director & Chief Executive Officer, ICICI Bank: 

"ICICI Bank has a rich legacy of leveraging the latest technology to bring in new paradigms in banking. Akin to pioneering new technologies in the country like software robotics, mobility and near-field communication among others, I am delighted that we are the first bank in India and among few globally to set up a blockchain application. We have also marked a milestone by piloting a blockchain network with Emirates NBD and Infosys Finacle as partners and have successfully executed cross-border open account trade finance and remittance transactions. I envision that the emerging technology of blockchain will play a significant role in banking in the coming years by making complex bilateral and multi-lateral banking transactions seamless, quick and more secure. Going forward, we also intend to work on expanding the blockchain ecosystem and create common working standards to contribute to the commercial adoption of this initiative."

About EdgeVerve Systems Ltd 

EdgeVerve Systems, a wholly owned subsidiary of Infosys, develops innovative software products and offers them on-premise or as cloud-hosted business platforms. Our products help businesses develop deeper connections with stakeholders, power continuous innovation and accelerate growth in the digital world. We power our clients' growth in rapidly evolving areas like banking, digital marketing, interactive commerce, distributive trade, credit servicing, customer service and enterprise buying. 

Today EdgeVerve products are used by global corporations across financial services, insurance, retail and CPG, life sciences, manufacturing, and telecom. Finacle, our universal banking solution, is the choice of financial institutions across 84 countries and serves over 547 million customers - nearly 16.5 percent of the world's adult banked population.

To know more, visit http://www.edgeverve.com

Safe Harbor 

Certain statements in this press release concerning our future growth prospects are forward-looking statements regarding our future business expectations intended to qualify for the 'safe harbor' under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, which involve a number of risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those in such forward-looking statements. The risks and uncertainties relating to these statements include, but are not limited to, risks and uncertainties regarding fluctuations in earnings, fluctuations in foreign exchange rates, our ability to manage growth, intense competition in IT services including those factors which may affect our cost advantage, wage increases in India, our ability to attract and retain highly skilled professionals, time and cost overruns on fixed-price, fixed-time frame contracts, client concentration, restrictions on immigration, industry segment concentration, our ability to manage our international operations, reduced demand for technology in our key focus areas, disruptions in telecommunication networks or system failures, our ability to successfully complete and integrate potential acquisitions, liability for damages on our service contracts, the success of the companies in which Infosys has made strategic investments, withdrawal or expiration of governmental fiscal incentives, political instability and regional conflicts, legal restrictions on raising capital or acquiring companies outside India, and unauthorized use of our intellectual property and general economic conditions affecting our industry. Additional risks that could affect our future operating results are more fully described in our United States Securities and Exchange Commission filings including our Annual Report on Form 20-F for the fiscal year ended March 31, 2016. These filings are available at http://www.sec.gov. Infosys may, from time to time, make additional written and oral forward-looking statements, including statements contained in the company's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission and our reports to shareholders. In addition, please note that the date of this press release is October 18, 2016, and any forward-looking statements contained herein are based on assumptions that we believe to be reasonable as of this date. The company does not undertake to update any forward-looking statements that may be made from time to time by or on behalf of the company unless it is required by law.

SOURCE Infosys Finacle