The budding Swiss crypto bank SEBA uses Finstar as its banking platform

SEBA Crypto AG aims to become one of the first crypto banks in Switzerland and has applied for a banking license from the Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority (FINMA) for this purpose. For operations, SEBA will use the Finstar® open banking platform as its core banking system. A corresponding agreement has been signed by SEBA Crypto AG and Hypothekarbank Lenzburg AG, which develops and distributes Finstar®.

During the project phase, the Finstar platform will be optimized for the open and decentralized software architecture used by SEBA. For this purpose, the existing core banking system will be provided with the various interfaces to enable SEBA to process issuance, trading and custody transactions with cryptocurrencies and blockchain products in addition to using traditional Finstar services. The project phase will be completed in the second quarter of 2019.

In the subsequent operational phase, Hypothekarbank Lenzburg will manage application management and data center operations. In addition, SEBA will implement services and operating processes in the back office area of Hypothekarbank Lenzburg, for example in securities management or payment transaction processing. In contrast, SEBA will independently manage the crypto and blockchain-specific components in the settlement process.

"We are proud to welcome SEBA Crypto AG, one of the first crypto banks in Switzerland. The expansion of our system into a platform for cryptocurrency transactions is a quantum leap. We are thus entering new territory in the core banking sector and look forward to the strategic cooperation with SEBA," says Marianne Wildi, Chairwoman of the Executive Board of Hypothekarbank Lenzburg AG.

"We are pleased to have found a stable and efficient platform for our transactions with cryptocurrencies and blockchain products in Hypothekarbank Lenzburg's core banking system Finstar®. Today's announcement is a sign of the new reality in the financial world where we, as a regulated institution, want to bridge the gap between traditional banking and the digital ecosystem," says Guido Bühler, CEO of SEBA.