EDITOR'S LETTER

摘要

Ubs, Ing and Nasdaq are among the financial players looking at the revolutionary potential of Bitcoin's blockchain technology. Faster payments and instant securities settlement are only the start. Small businesses would be better able to access finance, banks could assess mortgage portfolios at the click of a mouse and there may be solutions for trade finance documents, audits and compliance. The Banker's former technology editor Dan Barnes explores the options in this month's cover story starting on page 18. New platforms and technology improvements are part of the ever-growing success story that is Islamic finance, and in this year's Islamic Bank of the Year awards we expand our coverage of the industry. For the second year in a row, Malaysia's May-bank Islamic came out in pole position, as James King reports. To see a full list of winners together with analysis of why they won, please turn to page 24.