Share this article
UBS Seeks IP Protection for Smart Contract Blockchain Validation
In a patent application released by the USPTO, money manager UBS indicated it was considering using smart contracts to validate transactions.
By Nikhilesh De
Updated Sep 13, 2021, 7:14 a.m. Published Dec 5, 2017, 6:35 a.m.
The world’s largest financial services company is looking into creating more secure computer systems.
In a patent application released by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office last Thursday, UBS explains how it might use a distributed ledger to validate transactions by creating a permanent record of every action committed on the chain.
STORY CONTINUES BELOW
Don't miss another story.Subscribe to the Crypto Daybook Americas Newsletter today. See all newsletters
The key advantages a distributed ledger has over traditional technologies is its decentralization and immutability, according to the application.
The document emphasizes:
“Although a number of non-blockchain-based technologies related to account and data security, authentication, and verification exist (e.g., authorization/access to financial or other accounts, verification of buyers of purchase transactions, verification of owners of securities, verification of notaries of documents, etc.), many of these technologies rely on trust of the third party managing the database and/or lack one or more benefits of blockchain technology.”
The application noted the use of smart contracts to automatically register that a record is added to the chain. Once the record is added, the user will automatically receive a notification sent by the same contract.
UBS indicated it could either put the smart contract on the same blockchain that stores the data being added or develop two separate blockchains: one to store the data, and one to hold the smart contract monitoring data additions.
The company has long been interested in blockchain applications, with UBS chief executive Sergio Ermotti saying he believes blockchain technology "play a big role in changing and reshaping our industry" this past October.
Putting their money where their mouth is, the company had already revealed a trade transaction platform built on a blockchain in partnership with IBM late in 2016. Called Batavia, the project has been expanding with four major banks joining the effort near the beginning of October 2017.
UBS image via Denis Linine / Shutterstock
More For You
What to know:
- As of October 2025, GoPlus has generated $4.7M in total revenue across its product lines. The GoPlus App is the primary revenue driver, contributing $2.5M (approx. 53%), followed by the SafeToken Protocol at $1.7M.
- GoPlus Intelligence's Token Security API averaged 717 million monthly calls year-to-date in 2025 , with a peak of nearly 1 billion calls in February 2025. Total blockchain-level requests, including transaction simulations, averaged an additional 350 million per month.
- Since its January 2025 launch , the $GPS token has registered over $5B in total spot volume and $10B in derivatives volume in 2025. Monthly spot volume peaked in March 2025 at over $1.1B , while derivatives volume peaked the same month at over $4B.
More For You
Bitcoin Treads Water Near $90K as Bitfinex Warns of 'Fragile Setup' to Shocks
BTC's relative weakness compared to stocks points to tepid spot demand, making the largest crypto vulnerable to macro volatility, Bitfinex analysts said.
What to know:
- Bitcoin erased very modest overnight gains early Monday and spent the rest of the U.S. session in a tight range around the $90,000 level.
- Rising long bond yields and a small U.S. equities pulling back weighed on risk appetite as traders eye this week's Federal Reserve meeting.
- Bitfinex analysts pointed out bitcoin's relative weakness against U.S. stocks amid modest spot demand and structural softness.
Top Stories
