Bank of China and HSBC are among a group of lenders aiming to launch mortgage services in Hong Kong using blockchain — the decentralised database technology behind the digital currency bitcoin.

So far, Bank of China (Hong Kong) has led tests on a property valuation system for home loans based on blockchain technology, according to Duncan Wong, vice-president of financial technologies at Astri, the government-backed research institute working on the system. He said the bank plans to go live with it next month.

It will use the secure database capabilities of blockchain to provide quick property valuations for mortgage applicants in Hong Kong. At present, when customers apply for mortgages, the banks hire surveyors to value the property being bought. But as different customers shop around for mortgages, the same survey work is often conducted multiple times on the same property.