Japanese think tank Nomura Research Institute (NRI) and Microsoft Japan are joining forces to establish the Financial Digital Innovation Consortium.

Officially launching today, on November 01, 2017, the consortium will initially be composed of 18 organizations that will conduct proof of concept (PoC) studies on key trends in financial technology (fintech). Participating organizations include Infosys, INTEC, Information Services Int'l -Dentsu, Japan System Techniques, and Nihon Unisys, among others.

The consortium aims to improve financial institutions’ operation and expand their operation scope through the sharing of information, thereby increasing their profitability by reducing workload, optimizing IT investments and shortening service release. It will particularly focus on financial cloud, advanced data utilization, and the applications of new technologies, including AI, deep learning, and blockchain. Its working groups will conduct PoCs on these areas.

“NRI is very excited to be at the forefront of what we believe to be an extremely important gathering of the top organizations in Japanese financial services,” says Minoru Yokote, Senior Managing Director of NRI. “Through our work together, the consortium will be able to jumpstart innovation in Japanese financial services, driving companies to higher levels of efficiency and optimization through FinTech.”

NRI will drive the discussion among the consortium, utilizing its accumulated knowledge through providing ICT service to financial institutions. Microsoft Japan will facilitate the consortium as an executive office while providing technological support including Microsoft Azure, a public cloud platform the consortium will use at the core of its operations.