Baton onboards Basel III reform Chairman Bill Coen

Baton Systems has appointed Bill Coen as a new Senior Advisor as the blockchain-powered solution for asset movements and settlements scales to support growing demand.

The firm, which aims to mitigate operational and settlement risk, reduce capital usage, and address intraday funding requirements, has onboarded Bill Coen, former Basel Committee Secretary General.

Mr. Coen spearheaded the Basel III reforms, which have raised increasing minimum capital requirements, holdings of high quality liquid assets, and decreased bank leverage.

Baton will make the most of Mr. Coen’s deep and comprehensive understanding of prudential standards. His 35-year career in financial regulation includes serving with the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System and a 20-year tenure at the Bank for International Settlements (BIS) in Basel, Switzerland.

While serving as Secretary General and Chairman of the Basel Committee’s Policy Development Group, Coen spearheaded the Basel III post-crisis reforms.

Baton aims to facilitate the movement of billions of dollars of cash and securities on a daily basis and Mr. Coen will help the firm accelerate its growth plans for the delivery of robust, zero-friction processes across additional payment and settlement workflows.

William Coen, Senior Advisor at Baton Systems, said: “I’m really pleased to be on-board. Baton’s innovative application of DLT is proving transformational. As a former regulator, it is pleasing to see this secure technology enable banks to reduce settlement risk, while increasing transparency and auditability. I’ve spent the vast proportion of my career developing prudential standards, it’s great to now be involved with a company that is enabling all firms to safely settle their FX trades.”

Arjun Jayaram, CEO and Founder of Baton Systems added: “I’m delighted to welcome Bill to Baton, his familiarity with the regulatory requirements impacting risk management, capital adequacy and funding regulations is second to none. Being at the helm of a rapidly maturing business that is serving clients challenged by these very requirements, in an environment with increasing FX trading volumes and unrelenting cost constraints, Bill’s counsel has already proved invaluable as we embark on the next stage of our journey.”

Baton Systems features an impressive line-up of industry leaders, including former CFTC chairman, Christopher Giancarlo, and Citi’s former Global Head of Futures, OTC Clearing, and FX Prime Brokerage, Jerome Kemp.