Sept. 19, 2023, London – HSBC, a British financial institution and monetary companies group, introduced in the present day that it has efficiently trialled quantum-secure expertise for purchasing and promoting tokenised bodily gold. The corporate stated this marks the newest step by HSBC within the safety of crucial purposes from potential future quantum computing assaults.
Final yr, HSBC stated it was the primary world financial institution to supply tokenised bodily gold to institutional buyers utilizing distributed ledger expertise (DLT). This yr noticed one other first, with the launch of HSBC Gold Token for retail buyers in Hong Kong, permitting them to amass fractional possession of bodily gold. Each launches use the expertise of the HSBC Orion digital property platform.
HSBC additionally examined the interoperability of its gold tokens utilizing post-quantum cryptography (PQC) to maneuver digital property safely throughout distributed ledgers through safe networks, addressing shoppers’ evolving wants and laws. This included the potential to transform HSBC’s gold tokens into ERC-20 fungible tokens, thereby enhancing distribution and interoperability with different DLTs and digital wallets.
As a part of the quantum pilot, quantum computing firm Quantinuum used PQC algorithms[1] and its Quantum Origin quantum randomness expertise to display holistic safety of digital property corresponding to HSBC gold tokens from a quantum computing assault, and forestall “retailer now, decrypt-later” (SNDL) cyber incidents. SNDL is a cyber-technique that has the goal of stealing delicate knowledge every now and then storing it to decipher that knowledge later, utilizing highly effective quantum computer systems sooner or later.
Philip Intallura, International Head of Quantum Applied sciences, HSBC, stated: “HSBC was the primary worldwide financial institution to supply tokenised bodily gold and is now constructing on that innovation with cutting-edge cybersecurity safety for the long run. This pilot efficiently demonstrated the viability of deploying these superior applied sciences for a real-world enterprise atmosphere.”
Ilyas Khan, Quantinuum founder and Chief Product Officer, stated: “As long-time companions in exploring industrial quantum purposes, HSBC and Quantinuum are collectively constructing the subsequent era of economic companies that includes quantum-hardened defences harnessing the ability of in the present day’s quantum computer systems to safeguard delicate knowledge now and into the long run.”
