Crypto Finance Group, AMINA Bank and Incore Bank have completed the second phase of their payment infrastructure pilot on Google Cloud Universal Ledger (GCUL). For the first time, the three FINMA-regulated institutions processed real client transactions in a production environment.
The pilot demonstrates near-instant interbank transfers with integrated netting and automated AML screening. Compared to the proof-of-concept from November 2025, this phase marks a tangible step forward. Specifically, the system consolidates multiple individual transfers into bundled bank-to-bank clearing operations. In addition, compliance checks run in real time within the transaction flow, not after the fact. Notably, the entire pilot operates without stablecoins or central bank digital currency. As a result, only commercial bank money moves on the ledger.
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How Google Cloud Universal Ledger works
GCUL is a permissioned layer-1 blockchain from Google Cloud. It first became public in March 2025 as part of a partnership with CME Group. Consequently, only verified institutions with KYC clearance can access the network. Financial institutions do not need to run their own nodes. Instead, they connect through a single API. In other words, transactions settle atomically, meaning they are instant and irreversible.
In the pilot, Crypto Finance acted as the so-called Currency Operator. As such, the company defined governance standards, onboarding criteria and transaction rules. Similarly, AMINA Bank and Incore Bank integrated the new functions directly into their regulated banking environments. Google Cloud positions GCUL as "credibly neutral" because the infrastructure is not owned by a direct financial competitor. As a consequence, this sets the approach apart from proprietary systems such as JPMorgan's Kinexys.
For participating banks, this means they can supplement existing payment infrastructure without seeking new regulatory approvals. After all, the pilot operates entirely within existing AML frameworks and requires no new form of money.
Three FINMA-regulated institutions with different profiles
The composition of the consortium is deliberate. Crypto Finance Group has been part of Deutsche Boerse Group since December 2021. It holds a FINMA licence as a securities firm. Moreover, in early 2025, the company obtained one of the first MiCA licences in the EU. AMINA Bank, formerly SEBA Bank, has held a FINMA banking licence since August 2019. Furthermore, it maintains regulated offices in Abu Dhabi, Hong Kong, Austria and the United Kingdom.
Incore Bank brings a different profile. As a pure B2B transaction bank based in Schlieren, it has no end-client relationships. Instead, it offers white-label banking for banks, asset managers and fintechs. In 2020, Incore became the first B2B bank in Switzerland with FINMA approval for digital asset services. According to CEO Mark Dambacher, the connection integrates seamlessly into the open platform that Incore operates for multiple banks. As a result, transactions ran without affecting the client experience.
However, one detail is easy to overlook. The November 2025 announcement did not yet name Incore as a participant. Its addition expands the pilot to include a pure infrastructure bank with no end clients of its own. In essence, this is precisely the type of institution that acts as a multiplier.
Positioning in the international competition
The GCUL pilot does not exist in isolation. For instance, JPMorgan's Kinexys already processes an annualised volume of over one trillion USD. In June 2025, it expanded onto the public Base L2 chain. Nevertheless, Kinexys remains a proprietary system, accessible only to JPMorgan clients. Fnality pursues a different approach. The consortium of 15 global banks, including Goldman Sachs, UBS and Barclays, secures itself through central bank accounts. In September 2025, Fnality raised a total of 136 million USD in a Series C round.
GCUL differs from both models. Google is not a financial institution and therefore not a direct competitor to participating banks. Likewise, the platform does not issue its own currency. At the same time, cloud-based access through a single API lowers the technical barrier to entry considerably.
For Switzerland, the context matters. SIX operates SDX, the world's first fully regulated digital financial market infrastructure for securities. Under Project Helvetia, the SNB and BIS tested real wholesale CBDC for the settlement of digital securities on SDX. In contrast, the GCUL pilot complements this infrastructure. It focuses on the interbank payment layer, not on securities settlement.
