Cross-Border CBDC Payments Are 'Viable,' Says Report From Central Banks of Australia, Malaysia, Singapore and South Africa

Cross-border payments using digital currencies might be coming closer to reality as central banks in Australia, South Africa, Singapore and Malaysia said in a report Tuesday their prototype platform for settling state-backed virtual assets was "technically viable."

• “Project Dunbar” is seeking to cut out financial intermediaries and reduce time and cost when paying overseas – making settlement as easy as domestic transactions.
• The prototype, kicked off in September, is still stuck on questions of regulation and governance as well as who should be given direct access to the platform.
• The plans would mean commercial banks can pay each other directly in another country’s virtual currency.
• It’s the latest in a series of projects convened by the Bank for International Settlements, which has also explored using tokenized assets for securities trading in Switzerland, and environmentally friendly green bonds in Hong Kong.
• Head of the BIS Singapore Innovation Hub Andrew McCormack said in a media statement the project was “laying the foundation for the development of future global and regional platforms.”

Read more: Australia, Malaysia, Singapore, South Africa to Trial CBDCs for Cross-Border Payments