JPMorgan Denies Involvement with Blockchain Startup DIT Financial

JPMorgan Chase has shot down claims of its involvement in a blockchain project publicized last week.

A company called DIT Financial stated in a press release published on July 6, that it was working with JPMorgan on a project called DIT Wealth Chain. The headline of the press release states that the two companies are "[co-operating] to develop a new blockchain project." Further, the release contained a picture of an event with both firm's names on a presentation screen.

Yet, when contacted for comment, a representative for JPMorgan said they had no involvement with, or knowledge of, the project.

DIT Financial published a second press release on July 11, which, while this time making no reference to a relationship with JPMorgan, refers to "a new report from JPM." Yet the passage it quotes is actually sourced from a report published in July 2016, co-written with consultancy firm Oliver Wyman.

At the time of publishing, DIT Financial had not responded to a request for comment on the matter.

The press release isn't the first time that JPMorgan's famous name and brand have been used in this way.

Back in November 2015, CoinDesk reported that JPMorgan's China-based operation had put out a statement disavowing any involvement with a so-called "JPMCoin" scheme that was circulating via local social media at the time.

JPMorgan image via Lewis Tse Pui Lung/Shutterstock.com