According to official sources, the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) announced three initiatives today to ensure the safety and innovative use of digital currencies in Singapore. These initiatives include outlining the blueprint for the necessary infrastructure for the digital Singapore Dollar, expanding digital currency trials, and planning to issue a “real-time” central bank digital currency (CBDC) for wholesale settlements.
The three forms of digital currency that MAS is promoting include wholesale CBDC, tokenized bank liabilities, and regulated stablecoins. MAS released the Orchid blueprint today, which outlines the technological infrastructure required to facilitate future digital currency transactions:
Settlement Ledger: Records digital currency transfers and supports features such as local programmability and atomic settlement of digital tokens.
Tokenized Bridge: Connects existing account-based settlement systems with ledgers compatible with tokenized forms of digital currency.
Programmable Protocols: Specifies the conditions of use for digital currencies using Purpose-Bound Money (PBM) as a general protocol.
Name Services: Converts between complex wallet addresses and readable and verification-friendly alternative name identifiers.
To test the widespread applicability of PBM and digital currencies in Singapore, MAS will expand the digital currency trials of the “Orchid program” and conduct four new trials with industry partners to study relevant infrastructure components and business models.
To complement digital currency trials involving retail and corporate users in the financial industry, MAS will begin developing a CBDC for wholesale interbank settlements next year. Future pilots may include using “real-time” wholesale CBDC for cross-border securities trading settlements.