Banks Ignore Cryptocurrency but Embrace Blockchain
Banks remain skeptical of, if not outright hostile towards, cryptocurrency. They are inversely bullish, however, about its underlying technology – blockchain. This decentralized, public transaction ledger has been embraced by financial institutions for its transparency, speed, and security (as well as its potential to cut costs), and creative uses are being regularly implemented in different sectors. Now, JPMorgan has announced potential plans to spin-off its blockchain network, Quorum, into an independent company.
Quorum, which shares 95 percent of its software with cryptocurrency Ethereum’s blockchain, is an “enterprise-focused version of Ethereum…ideal for any application requiring high speed and high throughput processing of private transactions within a permissioned group of known participants” aimed at addressing “specific challenges to blockchain technology adoption within the financial industry, and beyond.”
The open-source project began in 2016, becoming part of the Ethereum Enterprise Alliance (EEA) in February of 2017. The EEA, which was developed to further the development of the Ethereum blockchain for business use, counts heavyweights like Santander and MasterCard as members. Since its launch, Quorum has attracted some significant international clients, with users including Microsoft, Genentech, and Pfizer.
Amber Baldet, the former product development lead for the project who recently left to found her own blockchain venture, spoke at March’s EthCC conference about using Quorum to further a spirit of collaboration between different networks. Baldet described the problems faced by blockchain designers as “[not] so far apart,” – in her estimation, differences between developers are based on approach, not overarching goals.
Meanwhile, banks remain hungry for developments related to the technology – continued success means simplifying their business infrastructure, reducing costs, and making processes like securities settlement more streamlined, or payment processing instantaneous.
Talks about turning Quorum into an independent company are in their early stages. Executives are said to be determining if the increased autonomy resulting from a spin-off would allow Quorum to support new open-source projects with additional partners. Brian Marchiony, a JPMorgan spokesman, said in a statement that “[JPMorgan continues]to believe distributed ledger technology will play a transformative role in business, which is why [they] are actively building multiple blockchain solutions…Quorum has become an extremely successful enterprise platform even beyond financial services and we’re excited about its potential.” No matter which fate JPMorgan executives choose for Quorum, banks are ready to continue betting big on blockchain and its transformative powers for their industry.
Contributor
Sergey Savastiouk, Ph.D. has a degree in Applied Mathematics from Moscow University and has extensive experience as an entrepreneur, investor, manager, and mathematician. His professional expertise is in applied mathematics, mathematical modeling, system and pattern analysis, and software and hardware system integration. He has served as the CEO of several hi-tech start-up companies and nonprofit organizations, which has given him proven capabilities in business strategy for high-tech start-up companies, market assessment, company formation, team building, product development, marketing, and sales. He has published numerous articles in journals and magazines on related fields. As a retail investor, he spent 15 years developing his proprietary trading and quantitative algorithms (now Tickeron’s A.I.), which brought him significant returns in trading the stock market. His current work and goal in founding Tickeron is to bring professional, sophisticated stock market analysis capabilities to retail investors via an easy-to-use interface.
MA sees its Stochastic Oscillator climbs out of oversold territory
On October 05, 2026, the Stochastic Oscillator for MA moved out of oversold territory and this could be a bullish sign for the stock. Traders may want to buy the stock or buy call options. Tickeron's A.I.dvisor looked at 60 instances where the indicator left the oversold zone. In 37 of the 60 cases the stock moved higher in the following days. This puts the odds of a move higher at over 62%.
Technical Analysis (Indicators)
Bullish Trend Analysis
Following a +2.65% 3-day Advance, the price is estimated to grow further. Considering data from situations where MA advanced for three days, in 171 of 342 cases, the price rose further within the following month. The odds of a continued upward trend are 50%.
MA may jump back above the lower band and head toward the middle band. Traders may consider buying the stock or exploring call options.
Bearish Trend Analysis
The Momentum Indicator moved below the 0 level on September 25, 2026. You may want to consider selling the stock, shorting the stock, or exploring put options on MA as a result. In 40 of 90 cases where the Momentum Indicator fell below 0, the stock fell further within the subsequent month. The odds of a continued downward trend are 44%.
The Moving Average Convergence Divergence Histogram (MACD) for MA turned negative on September 01, 2026. This could be a sign that the stock is set to turn lower in the coming weeks. Traders may want to sell the stock or buy put options. Tickeron's A.I.dvisor looked at 49 similar instances when the indicator turned negative. In 24 of the 49 cases the stock turned lower in the days that followed. This puts the odds of success at 49%.
MA moved below its 50-day moving average on September 22, 2026 date and that indicates a change from an upward trend to a downward trend.
The 10-day moving average for MA crossed bearishly below the 50-day moving average on September 22, 2026. This indicates that the trend has shifted lower and could be considered a sell signal. In 9 of 15 past instances when the 10-day crossed below the 50-day, the stock continued to move higher over the following month. The odds of a continued downward trend are 60%.
Following a 3-day decline, the stock is projected to fall further. Considering past instances where MA declined for three days, the price rose further in 50 of 62 cases within the following month. The odds of a continued downward trend are 55%.
The Aroon Indicator for MA entered a downward trend on October 05, 2026. This could indicate a strong downward move is ahead for the stock. Traders may want to consider selling the stock or buying put options.
Fundamental Analysis (Ratings)
The Tickeron SMR rating for this company is 10 (best 1 - 100 worst), indicating very strong sales and a profitable business model. SMR (Sales, Margin, Return on Equity) rating is based on comparative analysis of weighted Sales, Income Margin and Return on Equity values compared against S&P 500 index constituents. The weighted SMR value is a proprietary formula developed by Tickeron and represents an overall profitability measure for a stock.
The Tickeron Profit vs. Risk Rating rating for this company is 24 (best 1 - 100 worst), indicating low risk on high returns. The average Profit vs. Risk Rating rating for the industry is 78, placing this stock better than average.
The Tickeron Seasonality Score of 50 (best 1 - 100 worst) indicates that the company is fair valued in the industry. The Tickeron Seasonality score describes the variance of predictable price changes around the same period every calendar year. These changes can be tied to a specific month, quarter, holiday or vacation period, as well as a meteorological or growing season.
The Tickeron Price Growth Rating for this company is 53 (best 1 - 100 worst), indicating steady price growth. MA’s price grows at a higher rate over the last 12 months as compared to S&P 500 index constituents.
The Tickeron PE Growth Rating for this company is 61 (best 1 - 100 worst), pointing to consistent earnings growth. The PE Growth rating is based on a comparative analysis of stock PE ratio increase over the last 12 months compared against S&P 500 index constituents.
The Tickeron Valuation Rating of 100 (best 1 - 100 worst) indicates that the company is significantly overvalued in the industry. This rating compares market capitalization estimated by our proprietary formula with the current market capitalization. This rating is based on the following metrics, as compared to industry averages: MA's P/B Ratio (88.496) is very high in comparison to the industry average of (3.945). MA has a moderately high P/E Ratio (31.257) as compared to the industry average of (14.459). Projected Growth (PEG Ratio) (1.484) is also within normal values, averaging (3.918). Dividend Yield (0.006) settles around the average of (0.050) among similar stocks. P/S Ratio (14.472) is also within normal values, averaging (5.901).
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