United States banking giant JPMorgan Chase is launching its own cryptocurrency, the JPM Coin, in a first for U.S. banking. In a move commentators may see as unlikely, the multinational lender will use its newly developed asset to increase settlement efficiency, initially within three of its operations. Speaking to CNBC, Umar Farooq, who leads JPM’s blockchain focus, appeared buoyant on blockchain technology’s perspectives at the bank. JPM Coin will initially focus on international settlements by major corporations, helping speed up transactions that currently take a day or longer using extant options such as SWIFT. The new coin operates on a…