A consortium of 47 Japanese banks has completed pilot implementation of Ripple’s distributed technology in Japan.

For the pilot phase, the banks have used a cloud-based payments platform RC Cloud, which enables real-time money transfers.

With the completion of the pilot phase, the banks now plan to move into commercial phase of using blockchain technology.

Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse said: “Consortiums are not hard to come by in this industry, but what makes this significant is that these leading Japanese banks are focused on a clear use case and moving blockchain into production.

“This is a concrete example that our solution is already transforming how money is sent around the world.”

By using Ripple’s solution to improve their payments system, the banks are said to have made significant progress to move the blockchain technology into production.

During the pilot implementation, the banks have evaluated various aspects involved in the operation of RC Cloud. They studied operational risks, regulatory considerations, standardization and potential interfaces to connect with banks’ accounting systems.

To expand the Ripple network, the consortium also plans to connect with banks globally.

SBI Ripple Asia CEO Takashi Okita said: “Domestic and cross-border payments have been silo processes that are expensive, but RC Cloud allows for a seamless transaction for both types of payments on one platform.

“And as we continue to expand our network, we look forward to utilizing Ripple to enhance banks’ transactions across the world.”

The consortium includes Shinkin Central Bank, The Sikoku Bank, , SBI Sumishin Net Bank, The Bank of Yokohama,  The Hiroshima Bank, The Tokyo Star Bank, Daiwa Next Bank, The Yamagata Bank, among others.

In January, Interbank messaging network Swift has announced stepping up its exploration of blockchain technology with the launch of a proof of concept (PoC).

The launch is aimed at finding whether distributed ledger technology (DLT) can be used by banks to improve the reconciliation of their nostro databases in real time, optimising their global liquidity.

Image:The banks now plan to move into commercial phase of using blockchain technology. Photo courtesy of Stuart Miles/FreeDigitalPhotos.net.