The Post-Trade Distributed Ledger (PTDL) Group on Tuesday announced Brazil-based BTG Pactual is joining its organising committee. BTG Pactual is the largest independent investment bank in Latin America. It joins other committee members CLS Bank International, Janus Henderson, London Stock Exchange Group (LSEG), Moscow Exchange, State Street, and GBBC.
PTDL Group provides a platform for collaboration for market participants to share information on blockchain and discuss applications in the financial services sector. In September 2018, PTDL merged with the Global Blockchain Business Council (GBBC), a worldwide trade association in the blockchain ecosystem.
Sandra Ro, CEO of GBBC said that the group “have no doubt that their [BTG Pactual’s] strong industry position will be instrumental in furthering our efforts to realise and maximise the potential of distributed ledger technologies.”
BTG Pactual was at the center of controversy when its founder and majority owner Andre Esteves was arrested in 2015 in a corruption probe. At the time, it triggered a wave of investment redemptions, forcing the bank to sell assets. However, Esteves was acquitted last year and returned to BTG. According to Reuters, he has asked the Brazilian Central Bank to allow him to take back a significant stake in the bank’s controlling partnership.
For BTG Pactual, which also announced its results on Tuesday, it is a wave of positives with its loan book for FY2019 rising 33 percent and the same expected to grow by 30 percent next year.
Andre Portilho, Associate Partner and Head of Digital Assets at BTG Pactual, said, “GBBC and PTDL Group are doing an amazing job pushing the industry forward. For BTG Pactual, this is a great opportunity to take part in the industry and work together with this dynamic group.”
PTDL Group has over 40 members including regulated sell-side, buy-side asset managers, sovereign wealth funds and hedge funds as well as observing members including regulators, central banks, government agencies, academia, and law firms. The Group doesn’t disclose the members.
Under the ambit of GBBC, PTDL said it has been holding monthly meetings with its members and other stakeholders to stay updated on the regulatory environment on blockchain and its impact on the industry.
Meanwhile, PTDL added that it is working with its buy-side members to publish a DLT report by the end of this year.
