diff --git a/core/ledger/util/filterbitarray.go b/core/ledger/util/filterbitarray.go
new file mode 100644
index 00000000000..ed3cdb8dfde
--- /dev/null
+++ b/core/ledger/util/filterbitarray.go
@@ -0,0 +1,82 @@
+/*
+Copyright IBM Corp. 2016 All Rights Reserved.
+
+Licensed under the Apache License, Version 2.0 (the "License");
+you may not use this file except in compliance with the License.
+You may obtain a copy of the License at
+
+		 http://www.apache.org/licenses/LICENSE-2.0
+
+Unless required by applicable law or agreed to in writing, software
+distributed under the License is distributed on an "AS IS" BASIS,
+WITHOUT WARRANTIES OR CONDITIONS OF ANY KIND, either express or implied.
+See the License for the specific language governing permissions and
+limitations under the License.
+*/
+
+package util
+
+// FilterBitArray is an array of bits based on byte unit, so 8 bits at each
+// index. The array automatically increases if the set index is larger than the
+// current capacity. The bit index starts at 0.
+type FilterBitArray []byte
+
+// NewFilterBitArray creates an array with the specified bit-size. This is an
+// optimization to make array once for the expected capacity rather than
+// using Set function to auto-increase the array.
+func NewFilterBitArray(size uint) FilterBitArray {
+	ba := make(FilterBitArray, (size-1)/8+1)
+	return ba
+}
+
+// Capacity returns the number of bits in the FilterBitArray.
+func (ba *FilterBitArray) Capacity() uint {
+	return uint(len(*ba) * 8)
+}
+
+// Set assigns 1 to the specified bit-index, which is starting from 0.
+// Set automatically increases the array to accommodate the bit-index.
+func (ba *FilterBitArray) Set(i uint) {
+	// Location of i in the array index is floor(i/8) + 1. If it exceeds the
+	// current byte array, we'll make a new one large enough to include the
+	// specified bit-index
+	if i >= ba.Capacity() {
+		array := make([]byte, i/8+1)
+		copy(array, *ba)
+		*ba = array
+	}
+	(*ba)[i/8] |= 1 << (i % 8)
+}
+
+// Unset assigns 0 the specified bit-index. If bit-index is larger than capacity,
+// do nothing.
+func (ba *FilterBitArray) Unset(i uint) {
+	if i < ba.Capacity() {
+		(*ba)[i/8] &^= 1 << (i % 8)
+	}
+}
+
+// ValueAt returns the value at the specified bit-index. If bit-index is out
+// of range, return 0. Note that the returned value is in byte, so it may be
+// a power of 2 if not 0.
+func (ba *FilterBitArray) ValueAt(i uint) byte {
+	if i < ba.Capacity() {
+		return (*ba)[i/8] & (1 << (i % 8))
+	}
+	return 0
+}
+
+// IsSet returns true if the specified bit-index is 1; false otherwise.
+func (ba *FilterBitArray) IsSet(i uint) bool {
+	return (ba.ValueAt(i) != 0)
+}
+
+// ToBytes returns the byte array for storage.
+func (ba *FilterBitArray) ToBytes() []byte {
+	return *ba
+}
+
+// FromBytes accepts a byte array.
+func (ba *FilterBitArray) FromBytes(bytes []byte) {
+	*ba = bytes
+}
diff --git a/core/ledger/util/filterbitarray_test.go b/core/ledger/util/filterbitarray_test.go
new file mode 100644
index 00000000000..d1c19cc8aff
--- /dev/null
+++ b/core/ledger/util/filterbitarray_test.go
@@ -0,0 +1,102 @@
+/*
+Copyright IBM Corp. 2016 All Rights Reserved.
+
+Licensed under the Apache License, Version 2.0 (the "License");
+you may not use this file except in compliance with the License.
+You may obtain a copy of the License at
+
+		 http://www.apache.org/licenses/LICENSE-2.0
+
+Unless required by applicable law or agreed to in writing, software
+distributed under the License is distributed on an "AS IS" BASIS,
+WITHOUT WARRANTIES OR CONDITIONS OF ANY KIND, either express or implied.
+See the License for the specific language governing permissions and
+limitations under the License.
+*/
+
+// To run this test by itself, enter `go test -run FilterBitArray` from this folder
+package util
+
+import (
+	"bytes"
+	"encoding/binary"
+	"testing"
+)
+
+func TestFilterBitArrayFixed(t *testing.T) {
+	ba := NewFilterBitArray(25)
+	// Note that capacity may be greater than 25
+	t.Logf("FilterBitArray capacity: %d\n", ba.Capacity())
+	var i uint
+	for i = 0; i < ba.Capacity(); i++ {
+		ba.Set(i)
+	}
+	// All bits must be set
+	for i = 0; i < ba.Capacity(); i++ {
+		if !ba.IsSet(i) {
+			t.FailNow()
+		}
+	}
+	for i = 0; i < ba.Capacity(); i++ {
+		ba.Unset(i)
+	}
+	// All bits must be unset
+	for i = 0; i < ba.Capacity(); i++ {
+		if ba.IsSet(i) {
+			t.FailNow()
+		}
+	}
+}
+
+func TestFilterBitArraySparse(t *testing.T) {
+	ba := new(FilterBitArray)
+	// test byte boundary
+	ba.Unset(0)
+	ba.Set(8)
+	ba.Unset(9)
+	ba.Set(116)
+	if ba.IsSet(0) {
+		t.FailNow()
+	}
+	if !ba.IsSet(8) {
+		t.FailNow()
+	}
+	if ba.IsSet(9) {
+		t.FailNow()
+	}
+	if !ba.IsSet(116) {
+		t.FailNow()
+	}
+}
+
+func TestFilterBitArrayIO(t *testing.T) {
+	ba := NewFilterBitArray(20)
+	var i uint
+	for i = 0; i < 20; i++ {
+		if i%2 == 0 {
+			ba.Set(i)
+		} else {
+			ba.Unset(i)
+		}
+	}
+	b := ba.ToBytes()
+	buf := new(bytes.Buffer)
+	if err := binary.Write(buf, binary.LittleEndian, b); err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("binary.Write failed: %s", err)
+	}
+	if err := binary.Read(buf, binary.LittleEndian, b); err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("binary.Read failed: %s", err)
+	}
+	ba.FromBytes(b)
+	for i = 0; i < 20; i++ {
+		if i%2 == 0 {
+			if !ba.IsSet(i) {
+				t.FailNow()
+			}
+		} else {
+			if ba.IsSet(i) {
+				t.FailNow()
+			}
+		}
+	}
+}