CaixaBank makes quantum computing breakthrough

CaixaBank has joined forces with vendor D-Wave Systems to apply quantum computing in investment portfolio hedging calculation in the insurance sector.

In a proof-of-concept, the Spanish bank's life insurance and pensions company, VidaCaixa, used D-Wave’s Leap quantum cloud service and quantum hybrid solvers to build an application within their investment portfolio selection and allocation, and within their portfolio hedging efforts.

Using D-Wave’s quantum hybrid solver services enabled the bank to code a faster algorithm, which markedly reduces the computing time necessary to improve the investment portfolio hedging.

What normally took the bank several hours of compute time was reduced to just minutes, which, says CaixaBank, meant increased modelling complexity, allowing for a more dynamic model that is better adapted to real-time markets.

The bank is now evaluating putting the application into regular production not only in VidaCaixa but in other areas in the organisation, over the coming months.

“We have always been an innovation-first organization, and very early on we recognized that investing in quantum computing could help us more efficiently provide state-of-the art products and services in order to offer the best client experience," says Gonzalo Gortazar, CEO, CaixaBank.