Audit, tax and advisory firm KPMG LLP on Wednesday announced the launch in Canada of a new service designed to help financial services companies realize the potential of blockchain capabilities.
Blockchain, or distributed ledger technology, underlies virtual currencies such as Bitcoin, and is touted as a way to streamline traditional back office processes, reduce risk, and lower processing costs.
KPMG’s offering, known as Digital Ledger Services, will provide everything from developing a case for using blockchain technology to systems and operations integration, and ongoing management of the infrastructure.
The advisory firm is also expanding a strategic alliance with tech giant Microsoft to work on blockchain initiatives, “which will help clients efficiently and securely move to the cloud for storage, while adopting disruptive blockchain technologies,” KPMG says in a news release.
KPMG suggests that the adoption of blockchain technology couldn’t only increase the speed and security of transactions, but could also enhance regulatory compliance by establishing a solid audit trail for both auditors and regulators.
“Distributed ledgers as exemplified by blockchain are an exciting way to rethink how contracts between multiple parties can be reliably and securely executed without the need for central intervention. It engenders agility, trust and traceability and opens up entirely new ways that parties can interact with each other, whether for basic payments or more complex activities such as identification or providence verification,” says Lian Zerafa, Canadian lead for financial services consulting for KPMG.