PSCU Joins CULedger's Distributed Ledger Technology Initiative
"Credit unions must continuously research new methods to improve efficiency and security in order to remain competitive."
St. Petersburg, Fla. based PSCU announced investment in CULedger, a credit union industry initiative for developing applications based on distributed ledger technology, which offers a protocol for financial transactions innovation.
“Credit unions must continuously research new methods to improve efficiency and security in order to remain competitive,” Chuck Fagan, president and CEO at PSCU, which calls itself the nation’s leading credit union service organization, said. “CULedger will benefit credit unions and their members by reducing risks associated with cybersecurity and fraud, improving the member experience, and reducing costs. We look forward to working with CULedger to bring this platform to market.”
“Our support of CULedger aligns with the market’s interest to determine how this powerful technology will be used by credit unions across several authentication and ledger use cases,” Brian Caldarelli, EVP and CFO at PSCU, added.
CULedger began in 2016 as a “research to action” initiative for developing a concept for a credit union system-wide, permissioned distributed ledger platform. In working with a national consortium of credit unions and trusted industry providers. CULedger, which uses blockchain technology to provide credit unions and members with innovative, cutting-edge products and services, announced the formation of CULedger, LLC, a new CUSO, last summer.
CULedger focuses on delivering innovative applications on a global DLT platform for credit unions. In working through a national consortium of 13 credit unions and trusted industry investors, CULedger has some new developments around a global self-sovereign digital identity that it said can further enhance the trust credit unions have with their members. CULedger aims to benefit credit unions and their members by reducing risks associated with cybersecurity and fraud, improving member experience and cutting costs.
Shared-ledger technology creates an online system through which multiple certified parties can securely exchange information and conduct transactions with those exchanges certified by all the organizations, called nodes, participating in a permissioned network using industry-leading distributed ledger technology.
CULedger began in 2016 as a proof-of-concept project led by CUNA and the Mountain West Credit Union Association, the Best Innovation Group, credit union system partners and credit unions. Their mission aimed to create a permissioned, distributed, shared ledger platform for credit unions.
CULedger differs from blockchain, often used interchangeably with distributed ledger technology. Blockchain increasingly became associated with only one DLT: permissionless, open system such as the bitcoin.