Goldman Sachs Files Patent to Settle Securities in Bitcoin

Trading settlement and clearing could go the way of bitcoin, as one white glove bulge bracket broker has filed a patent for technology to settle securities in the cyber cryptocurrency.

As first reported in Bitcoin Magazineon November 19, the United States Patent & Trademark Office (USPTO) published Goldman, Sachs & Co.s patent application 20150332395 or Cryptographic Currency For Securities Settlement. The patent described […] methods for settling securities in financial markets using distributed, peer-to-peer, and cryptographic techniques using a cryptocurrency named SETLcoin.

The application lists Paul Walker and Phil J. Venables as the inventors of the technology.

Walker is the co-head of technology at Goldman and a member of the Board of Directors of the Depository Trust and Clearing Corporation (DTCC). Venables is managing director and chief information security officer at Goldman Sachs.

The patent application addresses chain of custody of an asset, counterparty risk and settlement through a cryptocurrency called SETLcoin.According to the patent application viewed by Bitcoin Magazine, SETLcoin ownership can be used to prevent fraud, including float fraud such as kiting.

Goldman Sachs and IDG Capital Partners co-led a $50 million strategic investment round in Bitcoin company Circle in late April of this year. This was the first publicly announced cryptocurrency investment by Goldman. However, as reported by CB Insights, Goldmans investment activity into fintech startups has been intensifying.

[Editor’s Note: A previous version of this article did not have a link to the original Bitcoin Magazine article. It has now been added.]