Santander has confirmed its departure from blockchain working group R3.
A spokesperson for the bank told Global Custodian it was no longer a part of R3 but would continue to concentrate on its other blockchain projects.
Santander had been part of the working group since 2015 and is now the second bank to confirm it has ditched the organisation.
Goldman Sachs confirmed yesterday that it had departed the blockchain working group as it no longer aligned with the bank’s technology strategy.
The US investment bank was one of nine banks that founded R3 in 2014, alongside Credit Suisse, JP Morgan and others.
Earlier this year, R3 revealed that Brazilian exchange group BM&FBOVESPA and China Merchants Bank (CMB) had joined its blockchain partnership, designed to apply blockchain technology across global financial markets.
Santander joins Goldman Sachs in R3 departure
Santander joined R3 in 2015 but has now followed Goldman Sachs in leaving the venture.