Uber participates in blockchain investment pilot with HSBC, Franklin Templeton, and other institutions.

October 30 - According to Bloomberg, Uber participated in a pilot for blockchain-based corporate treasury investments, using HSBC tokenized deposits to purchase Franklin Templeton's tokenized money market fund on Thursday and sell it on Sunday. Compared to the traditional approach of exiting investments before banks and markets close on weekends, typically on Fridays, this transaction allowed it to earn approximately 1.5 extra days of yield.

The pilot was conducted by HSBC in collaboration with Franklin Templeton, Tradeweb, and Fireblocks, utilizing the Canton Network for liquidity and settlement. Fireblocks CEO Michael Shaulov stated that there is a significant amount of idle cash in corporate payment gaps, and this model can increase interest income while maintaining fund availability. He anticipates that hundreds of companies will begin adopting this model within the next 18 months.

Manish Kohli, HSBC's Global Head of Payments, said the pilot has demonstrated technological readiness and can now be deployed and promoted to other clients in the U.S., with future exploration of adding investment options beyond Franklin Templeton.