MAS teams up with BIS, Swiss and France central banks to test wholesale CBDCs

Project Mariana used DeFi technology concepts on a public blockchain.

The Monetary Authority of Singapore has teamed up with the Bank for International Settlements (BIS) and central banks in France and Switzerland to test cross-border trading and settlement of wholesale central bank digital currencies (CBDCs) between financial institutions.

Project Mariana was jointly developed by three BIS Innovation Hub centres (the Swiss, Singapore, and Eurosystem hub centres) together with MAS, Bank of France, and the Swiss National Bank. The proof of concept was successfully tested using cross-border trading and settlement of a hypothetical euro, Singapore dollar, and Swiss franc.

The project made use of new decentralized finance (DeFi) technology concepts on a public blockchain, and relied on three elements:

A common technical token standard provided by a public blockchain to facilitate exchange and interoperability between the different currencies;
Bridges for the seamless transfer of wCBDCs between different networks;
An Automated Market Maker (AMM), which is a specific type of decentralized exchange to trade and settle spot FX transactions automatically.

“As tokenisation and DeFi technologies are still nascent, further research and experimentation is needed. The BIS Innovation Hub and its global partners will continue exploring their benefits and challenges based on relevant use cases,” MAS and its partners said in a joint media release.

MAS added that the project should be considered purely experimental and does not indicate that any of the partner central banks intend to issue wCBDC or endorse DeFi or a particular technological solution.

“The project explored how multi-currency settlement may be performed atomically, while maintaining the independence of respective domestic settlement systems,” said Sopnendu Mohanty, Chief FinTech Officer, MAS.

“In addition, this collaboration enables central banks to explore and better understand the policy, governance and technical implications of using automated market markers to facilitate foreign exchange,” Mohanty added.

Follow the link s for more news on

Blockchain

Central bank digital currency

decentralised finance (DeFi)

Monetary Authority of Singapore

A NOTE FROM SINGAPORE BUSINESS REVIEW

If you've been wondering whether SBR could work for your company — yes, probably.

A lot of the companies we partner with started as readers. They'd been following our coverage for a while, saw their own customers and competitors in it, and eventually asked the obvious question: could we do something with you? The answer is usually yes. The shape of it depends on what you're trying to do.

The options are broader than most people assume — thought leadership articles, sponsored content, industry summits across Southeast Asia, regional awards programmes, podcasts, and media placements in print and digital. Some partners use one channel; most use a mix. We figure out the right combination by starting with your brief, not with our rate card.

So if the question has been on your mind, here's the easy way to ask it.

We'll tell you honestly whether we can help, and how. It's a better use of everyone's time.

Book a meeting

| Or download the media kit (PDF)

240,000 senior readers quarterly in print Top 1,700 Singapore companies reached

7 markets across Southeast Asia

Top News

'Christian Horner: Unfiltered' Comes to Singapore During F1 Week

The former Oracle Red Bull Racing Team Principal headlines a one-night-only live conversation on leadership, team culture and life at the pinnacle of Formula 1

Leisure & Entertainment

9 hours ago

SC Capital acquires townhouse compound in Chung Hom Kok, Hong Kong