Kiffmeister’s #Fintech Daily Digest (20260209)

February 9, 2026February 9, 2026 ~ kiffmeister ~ Leave a comment

I’m continuing my backfilling, this time catching up to some papers that were published in January that I put on the back burner because January was one of *those* months:

The Hidden Plumbing of Stablecoins: Financial and Technological Risks in the GENIUS Act Era (MIT DCI)

The MIT Digital Currency Initiative (DCI) published a paper evaluates the financial, technological, and regulatory risks facing U.S. dollar stablecoins under the 2025 GENIUS Act. The authors argue that while the Act strengthens reserve asset quality and transparency, it treats stablecoin stability primarily as a balance-sheet problem, leaving critical vulnerabilities unaddressed. Maintaining par-value redemption depends not only on high-quality backing assets but also on the functioning of Treasury and repo markets, broker-dealer balance-sheet capacity, and blockchain operational reliability. The paper identifies three interconnected risk layers: financial risks (including Treasury market fragility and dealer intermediation bottlenecks), technological risks (smart contract bugs, consensus attacks, bridge failures), and regulatory gaps (undefined redemption mechanics, lack of capital requirements, no access to Federal Reserve liquidity facilities). The analysis reveals that even conservatively backed stablecoins could face stress from redemption surges or market disruptions, and that stablecoin issuers have significantly lower capital buffers than commercial banks. The authors conclude that durable stability requires an integrated approach spanning financial-market infrastructure, prudential regulation, and software governance, while highlighting a key policy dilemma: granting stablecoin issuers Fed access could reduce liquidity risk but might disintermediate banks and affect monetary policy transmission. [Source: MIT DCI]

Stablecoins in Retail Payments (ArXiv)

ArXiv published a paper that systematically compares stablecoin-based payments with traditional card networks as retail payment systems. The authors introduce the CLEAR framework (Cost, Legality, Experience, Architecture, and Reach) to evaluate both systems across five dimensions. Their analysis reveals that while stablecoins offer advantages like continuous settlement, lower rail-level fees, and programmability, they suffer from significant drawbacks including weaker consumer protection (no native chargebacks), higher user-facing complexity (gas fees, wallet management), fragmented interoperability across blockchains, and limited merchant acceptance. Card networks, by contrast, subsidize consumers through interchange fees, provide strong legal recourse mechanisms, and benefit from standardized global infrastructure and network effects. The paper concludes that stablecoins demonstrate conditional advantages in closed-loop environments, cross-border corridors, and high-friction payment contexts (particularly in high-inflation economies), but remain structurally disadvantaged as general-purpose retail payment instruments compared to card networks due to their institutional incompleteness and lack of coordinated governance frameworks. [Source: ArXiv]

Central Bank Digital Currency and Monetary Sovereignty (CEPR)

The Centre for Economic Policy Research (CEPR) published an article that argues that a central bank digital currency (CBDC) is not essential for maintaining monetary sovereignty, contrary to popular claims. The author contends that throughout history, monetary stability has relied on a hybrid system of publicly defined units of account backed by private money (like bank deposits), rather than universal access to public currency. True monetary sovereignty depends on the central bank’s legal authority and its capacity to absorb risk through balance-sheet operations during crises, not on issuing retail digital currency. The article further distinguishes between money (the settlement asset) and payments (the transaction mechanism), arguing that concerns about foreign payment providers are payment system issues requiring regulatory solutions, not CBDC. [Source: CEPR]

Central Bank Digital Currency and Gresham’s Law: An Experimental Analysis (SNB)

The Swiss National Bank (SNB) published a paper that examines how people use central bank digital currency (CBDC) versus risky bank deposits through a laboratory experiment. The researchers tested Gresham’s law—the principle that “bad money drives out good”—by having participants allocate funds between a risk-free account (like CBDC) and a risky account (like bank deposits) that could lose 50% with 10% probability. Key findings show that when the risk-free account is unrestricted, people extensively hold and pay with it. However, when limited by a ceiling or negative interest rate, people tend to hoard the risk-free money as a store of value while using risky money for payments—confirming Gresham’s law. The study concludes that mechanisms designed to limit CBDC holdings (necessary to protect the banking system) may undermine its effectiveness as a payment method, suggesting it may be better to build payment systems on existing bank deposits rather than CBDC. [Source: SNB]

Upcoming Speaking Engagements:

The Digital Euro Conference 2026 (Frankfurt, March 26) will explore the future of money with a focus on CBDCs, stablecoins, and commercial bank tokens. This hybrid event offers the perfect platform to understand the future of digital money! [Register here and get 20% off the regular ticket price by using the Kiffmeister20 code!]

I produce a monthly digest of digital fiat currency (DFC) developments exclusively for the official sector (e.g., central banks, ministries of finance and international financial institution (e.g., the BIS, IMF, OECD, World Bank)) plus academics and firms that are active in the DFC space (commercial banks, technology providers, consultants, etc.). (DFCs include central bank digital currency (CBDC), stablecoins and tokenized deposits.) It goes out via email on the first business day of every month, and if you’re interested in being on the mailing list, please email me at john@kiffmeister.com.

Kiffmeister’s #Fintech Daily Digest (20260207)

February 7, 2026February 7, 2026 ~ kiffmeister ~ Leave a comment

Universal Launches UAE’s First Central Bank-Registered USD Stablecoin (Universal Digital)

[January 29, 2026] Universal Digital Intl Limited become the first Foreign Payment Token Issuer registered by the Central Bank of the United Arab Emirates (UAE), alongside the launch of USDU, the first USD-backed stablecoin to be registered as a Foreign Payment Token under the UAE’s Payment Token Services Regulation. This makes USDU the only compliant USD settlement option for digital assets in the UAE market. The stablecoin is backed 1:1 by reserves held in safeguarded accounts at Emirates NBD and Mashreq, with Mbank providing corporate banking support, and features monthly independent attestation by a global accounting firm. Universal, regulated by Abu Dhabi Global Market’s Financial Services Regulatory Authority, is partnering with AECoin, the first licensed UAE Dirham (AED) stablecoin in the UAE, for future AED conversions and with Aquanow for broader institutional distribution, positioning USDU as a bridge between traditional financial systems and the emerging digital asset economy both domestically and internationally. [Source: Universal Digital]

Some more backfilling:

Potential Implementation of Timor-Leste eCentavos (BCTL)

[September 6, 2024] Banco Central de Timor-Leste (BCTL) published its 2025-2035 Strategic Plan for Financial Sector Development in which it discussed its plans to possibly issue eCentavos central bank digital currency (CBDC), as part of its strategy to modernize the financial system, enhance payment efficiency, and promote financial inclusion. The project will follow a phased approach starting with a comprehensive feasibility study in 2025 that examines potential benefits, challenges, and lessons from other central banks’ CBDC experiences. This may be followed by pilot testing in at least five municipalities in 2026, and full-scale implementation in 2028. The plan emphasizes the importance of assessing technological resilience, privacy and security concerns, user adoption, and interoperability with existing financial systems during the gradual rollout. [Source: BCTL]

Upcoming Speaking Engagements:

Kiffmeister’s #Fintech Daily Digest (20260203)

February 3, 2026February 3, 2026 ~ kiffmeister

BSP Eyes CBDC for Settling Tokenized Government Bonds (GMA News)

The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) is reportedly developing a second proof of concept for its wholesale central bank digital currency (CBDC) to settle tokenized government bonds, following the completion of Project Agila testing in 2024. According to BSP deputy governor Mamerto Tangonan, this initiative will provide a settlement instrument for the Bureau of the Treasury’s tokenized treasury bonds (TTBs), which raised ₱10 billion from the domestic bond market using distributed ledger technology. The wholesale CBDC is intended for use by commercial banks and financial institutions for interbank payments, securities transactions, and cross-border payments, with the BSP planning to expand participation beyond the initial six banks in the next testing phase, though no specific timeline has been announced. [Source: GMA News]

Understanding Disputes Over Digitalization: CBDC Cross-Border Perspectives (Emory Law)

The Emory International Law Review published a paper by Heng Wang that examines the complexity of disputes arising from digitalization through the lens of cross-border central bank digital currencies (CBDCs). The paper analyzes CBDC-related disputes using a three-dimensional framework: the social dimension (divergent state interests, approaches, and levels of commonality among jurisdictions); the material dimension (subject matter complexities involving data, technology, and parties’ perceptions regarding dispute classification, risk tolerance, and market attitudes); and the temporal dimension (how technology and rule development evolve over time, creating legal vacuums and new challenges). The paper finds that dispute complexity stems from factors including regulatory inconsistencies across jurisdictions, technological uncertainties, varying privacy standards, interoperability challenges, and geoeconomic considerations. It argues that understanding these multifaceted dimensions is essential for developing effective dispute settlement mechanisms and governance frameworks as digitalization accelerates, particularly as CBDC networks expand and interconnect globally. [Source: Emory Law]

I’m also continuing my efforts to update my CBDC and CBDCTracker.org databases, so here’s some more backfilling:

Digital Turkish Lira Second Phase Progress Report (CBRT)

[November 24, 2025] The Central Bank of the Republic of Türkiye (CBRT) published a progress report on the 2nd phase of its Digital Turkish Lira project, which will focus on developing programmable payments and offline payment capabilities while maintaining core principles of privacy, interoperability, and financial inclusion. The digital lira will operate through a two-tier system where the central bank issues the currency and financial intermediaries provide user access without the central bank storing user identity data. Key developments include payment templates and packages that enable automated, condition-based transactions integrated with digital identity verification, and offline payment functionality using smart cards and NFC technology to work without internet connectivity. The system is being designed for interoperability with digital assets, cross-border payment platforms, and existing financial infrastructure, with the goal of reaching a minimum viable product stage by the end of this phase before any potential circulation decision in a third phase. Similar to the first phase, pilot tests will also be conducted in the second phase. [Source: CBRT]

Central Bank of Iraq on Banking reform, Digital Dinar, Dollar Transactions… (Iraq Business News)

[December 2, 2025] The Central Bank of Iraq (CBI) is reportedly developing a digital dinar project, although according to Governor Ali Mohsen Al-Alaqit, it requires significant time and infrastructure before launch. [Source: Iraq Business News]

Upcoming Speaking Engagements:

Kiffmeister’s #Fintech Daily Digest (20260126)

January 26, 2026January 26, 2026 ~ kiffmeister

Stablecoins in Payments: What the Raw Transaction Numbers Miss (LinkedIn)

McKinsey Financial Services published analysis reveals that while stablecoins show headline transaction volumes of up to $35 trillion annually, the actual payment activity is only about $390 billion—representing roughly 0.02% of global payments. Most reported stablecoin transactions consist of trading, internal fund shuffling, and automated blockchain activity rather than real-world payments like supplier payments or remittances. The research, conducted with Artemis Analytics, found that B2B payments dominate actual stablecoin usage at $226 billion (60% of total), with Asia-originated activity leading at $245 billion. While stablecoin supply has grown from under $30 billion in 2020 to over $300 billion today, with projections reaching $2-4 trillion by 2030, the analysis emphasizes that financial institutions need to critically evaluate raw blockchain data and invest strategically in proven use cases rather than relying on inflated volume figures to assess stablecoins’ current market position and potential. [Source: McKinsey]

When Monetary Innovation Makes Money Obsolete (OMFIF)

The Official Monetary and Financial Institutions Forum (OMFIF) published an article by Ousmène Mandeng that argues that tokenization and instant financial transactions could make traditional money holdings obsolete. The author explains that money’s value stems from transaction frictions—the delays and costs of converting assets into purchasing power. As tokenization enables near-instantaneous, frictionless conversion between interest-bearing securities and money, people would no longer need to hold money balances in advance of payments. Instead, they would convert assets to money just-in-time for transactions and immediately back again, causing money holdings to shrink toward zero while money velocity becomes unbounded. This would fundamentally reshape banking, blurring the lines between banks and investment funds, as money transitions from being a store of value to merely a transient settlement instrument within transaction flows. [Source: OMFIF]

Stablecoins Are the Future But Banks Will Survive (Bloomberg)

Bloomberg published an article that argues that stablecoins pose minimal threat to traditional banking. While banks worry that interest-bearing stablecoins will drain deposits and increase their funding costs, the article contends that historical evidence suggests stablecoins and bank deposits serve complementary rather than competing functions—similar to how bank notes and deposits coexisted during the National Banking Era. The authors note that 70-80% of bank deposits are insensitive to interest rates, with customers valuing bundled services like physical branches over higher yields, making mass migration to stablecoins unlikely. They conclude that stablecoins, backed strictly by cash and short-term Treasuries under the GENIUS Act, enhance financial stability rather than threaten it, while providing additional demand for government debt. [Source: Bloomberg]

Stablecoins as Eurodollars 2.0 – Toward a Shadow Dollar Standard (SSRN)

A paper posted on SSRN co-authored by the University of Toronto’s Redouane Elkamhi argues that fiat-backed stablecoins function as “Eurodollars 2.0″—a new generation of offshore dollar liabilities that operate outside traditional banking regulation but remain economically linked to U.S. financial markets through reserve holdings and redemption mechanisms. Like the historical eurodollar system, stablecoins expand dollar liquidity creation and circulation beyond domestic borders, potentially strengthening dollar dominance by embedding the dollar as the default settlement asset in tokenized finance and accelerating digital dollarization in economies with weak currencies. However, this creates similar fragilities: stablecoins can experience rapid redemption runs that force reserve liquidations and transmit stress to money markets, while their global accessibility may erode monetary sovereignty in other jurisdictions. The authors propose the “Stablecoin Eurodollar System” framework to analyze how stress propagates through on-chain payment layers, off-chain reserve portfolios, and wholesale funding markets, emphasizing that the key policy challenge is not whether stablecoins exist but how convertibility into state money is governed when usage becomes systemic—particularly regarding reserve requirements, transparency standards, and whether public sector liquidity backstops should be extended to this new class of dollar instruments. [https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=6061095]

Upcoming Speaking Engagements:

Kiffmeister’s #Fintech Daily Digest (20260120)

January 20, 2026January 20, 2026 ~ kiffmeister

India’s Central Bank Proposes Linking BRICS’ Digital Currencies (Reuters)

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has reportedly recommended that the Indian government place a proposal to interconnect BRICS central bank digital currencies (CBDCs) on the agenda for the 2026 BRICS summit, which India will host. The proposal aims to facilitate cross-border payments for trade and tourism among BRICS members, potentially reducing reliance on dollar-based settlement systems, though the RBI maintains its efforts are not directed toward de-dollarization. Implementation would require resolution of several technical and political challenges: none of the BRICS states has fully deployed a retail CBDC beyond pilot programs, and any operational framework would necessitate consensus on interoperable technology standards, governance structures, and mechanisms to manage trade imbalances—a problem illustrated by earlier Russia-India local-currency trade arrangements where Russia accumulated large rupee balances with limited deployment options. The sources indicated that bilateral foreign exchange swap arrangements between central banks, with weekly or monthly settlements, are under consideration as one potential solution, though they cautioned that member states’ reluctance to adopt technology platforms developed by other countries could impede progress. The initiative builds on the 2025 Rio declaration calling for payment system interoperability among BRICS members and would mark the first formal presentation of a CBDC linkage proposal at a BRICS leaders’ meeting, though previous ambitious BRICS initiatives, including proposals for a common BRICS currency, have failed to materialize. [Source: Reuters]

Upcoming Speaking Engagements:

Kiffmeister’s #Fintech Daily Digest (20251210)

December 10, 2025December 10, 2025 ~ kiffmeister

Norges Bank does not Recommend CBDC Introduction (Norges Bank)

Norges Bank has decided not to recommend introducing a central bank digital currency (CBDC) at this time, as Norway’s current payment system is already efficient, secure, and stable. The bank examined both retail and wholesale CBDC, but found no immediate need for either variant. However, Norges Bank acknowledges that circumstances may change due to rapid technological advances, tokenization trends, and the potential introduction of a digital euro by the Eurosystem. The bank will continue researching CBDCs and tokenization through experimental testing and international collaboration to ensure it can implement a CBDC if necessary in the future, with a detailed report planned for Q1 2026. [Source: Norges Bank]

Project Rialto: Improving Instant Cross-Border Payments using Central Bank Money Settlement (BIS)

The BIS Innovation Hub wrapped up Project Rialto, a collaboration with central banks from France, Italy, Malaysia, and Singapore to improve instant cross-border payments. The project successfully demonstrated the technical feasibility of connecting traditional instant payment systems with an automated foreign exchange (FX) market using tokenized central bank money (CeBM) as a settlement asset. The architecture combined two functional blocks: domestic instant payment systems linked through a hub mechanism, and a cross-border distributed ledger network (XDN) for automated FX conversion via automated market makers (AMMs). The proof of concept tested both direct currency transactions and those requiring a vehicle currency for low-liquidity corridors, achieving payment-versus-payment settlement with minimal changes to existing systems. While technically successful, the report identifies key economic considerations for operational viability, including fee structures, performance under different market conditions, transparency impacts, and liquidity requirements, noting that AMMs require pre-funding which introduces costs and that further research is needed on the interaction between traditional intermediaries and decentralized exchanges in currency markets. [Source: BIS]

The Future of the Federal Reserve Banks’ Check Services (FRB)

The Federal Reserve Board (FRB) is seeking public comment on the future of its check processing services as check usage has declined dramatically, while its aging infrastructure requires substantial investment to maintain current operations. The FRB is considering four potential strategies: continuing without investment (leading to service degradation over time), significantly simplifying services, substantially winding down operations, or upgrading infrastructure with major costs that would need to be recovered through higher fees. The FRB, which currently processes nearly half of the nation’s check volume, must balance the declining demand against legal requirements to recover all operating costs through service fees, while considering the broader impacts on the payments system and communities that still depend on checks. [Source: FRB]

Upcoming Speaking Engagements:

Kiffmeister’s #Fintech Daily Digest (20251121)

November 21, 2025 ~ kiffmeister

First UAE-China Direct Cross-Border CBDC Payment Made (CBUAE)

The Central Bank of the United Arab Emirates (CBUAE) executed the first direct payment to China using a central bank digital currency (CBDC) via the Jisr platform, established with the participation of a group of Emirati and Chinese banks. In parallel, the instant payment systems of the UAE and China were interconnected, allowing students, residents and firms in both countries to transfer funds securely and instantly across borders, aiming to reduce costs, enhance transaction reliability, and strengthen commercial ties. Also, the two countries’ central banks signed a memorandum of understanding to deepen cooperation in cross-border payments and financial infrastructure development. [Source: CBUAE]

ECB Advances Integration of TIPS with UPI and Nexus (ECB)

The European Central Bank (ECB) will advance the integration of the Eurosystem’s instant-payments platform (TARGET Instant Payment Settlement (TIPS)) with the Indian Unified Payments Interface (UPI) and the Nexus Global Payments scheme. India’s UPI is an instant payments system developed by the National Payments Corporation of India. Nexus is a multilateral payments scheme that will initially connect the fast payment systems of Bank Negara Malaysia, Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas, the Monetary Authority of Singapore, the Bank of Thailand and the Reserve Bank of India. The original concept was developed by the Bank for International Settlements. The decision is part of the Eurosystem’s overall efforts to make it easier for businesses and consumers in Europe to send and receive payments to and from other countries, including remittances. [Source: ECB]

Upcoming Speaking Engagements:

Kiffmeister’s #Fintech Daily Digest (20251115)

November 15, 2025November 15, 2025 ~ kiffmeister

Public Demand and Financial Implications for Retail CBDC: A Randomized Survey Experiment (BOK)

The Bank of Korea (BOK) published a working paper that examines public demand for retail central bank digital currency (CBDC) through a randomized survey experiment conducted in October 2023 with 2,879 South Korean respondents. The researchers tested five different CBDC designs varying by online/offline functionality, privacy protection features (through physical cards), and interest payment options. The key findings indicate that while CBDC design features (privacy protections and offline capabilities) do not significantly influence demand for CBDC as a payment method, offering positive interest rates does enhance its appeal as a store of value. The study finds that CBDC would primarily substitute debit card usage rather than credit cards or mobile payment apps, with overall projected usage around 28% of transactions. Trust in the central bank and willingness to adopt new technology emerge as more important determinants of CBDC demand than specific technical features. The authors recommend setting holding limits around 4-5 million KRW (EUR 3,000) to balance financial innovation against risks to bank disintermediation, as this would affect fewer than 15% of users while potentially reducing demand deposits by approximately 15-17% without such limits. [Source: BOK]

Payment Resilience in Fragile and Conflict-Affected States: Lessons for CBDC (IMF)

The IMF published a Fintech Note that analyzes how payment systems in fragile and conflict-affected states (FCS) face severe disruptions, from cyberattacks and infrastructure breakdowns to institutional challenges, and offers practical strategies to strengthen payment system resilience. Key lessons for policymakers include building redundancy through multisite operational architectures, leveraging distributed/cloud infrastructure and satellite networks, promoting user-centric design and digital literacy, and ensuring robust contingency planning and regulatory agility. The note finds that both cash and digital payments remain essential for continuity, with innovations in digital money, such as stablecoins and CBDC, playing emerging roles. For CBDCs, resilience depends on careful design, redundancy, offline capabilities, interoperability, and trust-building, but adoption faces operational, regulatory, and trust-related challenges unique to FCS settings. [Source: IMF]

The Impact of Central Bank Digital Currency on Payments Competition (IMF)

The IMF published a Fintech Note that examines whether central bank digital currencies (CBDCs) could enhance competition in retail payment markets. The authors analyze CBDC’s potential competitive impact through four channels: pricing discipline, service quality improvements, market contestability, and financial access expansion. The analysis identifies three market scenarios with varying competitive implications. In unregulated markets dominated by private platforms, CBDC could exert substantial competitive pressure by reducing fees and lowering entry barriers, particularly if interoperability with existing systems is ensured. In markets already subject to regulatory interventions such as interchange fee caps, CBDC would likely have more moderate effects, addressing residual gaps rather than fundamentally altering market dynamics. In jurisdictions with well-functioning public fast payment systems, CBDC would offer primarily incremental benefits, mainly extending access to underserved populations. The Note emphasizes that CBDC’s actual competitive impact depends critically on design choices—including fee structures, intermediary participation rules, holding limits, and interoperability requirements—and warns that overly aggressive pricing could crowd out private providers, potentially reducing payment system resilience and diversity. [Source: IMF]

Selected Legal Considerations for Central Bank Digital Currencies (IMF)

The IMF published a Fintech Note that provides comprehensive guidance for policymakers evaluating legal frameworks for central bank digital currency (CBDC) issuance, focusing primarily on retail CBDC (rCBDC) with separate analysis of wholesale CBDC (wCBDC). The authors examine how rCBDC should be legally classified as currency under public law—establishing it as a direct central bank liability with attributes including monopoly of issuance, cours forcé, legal tender status, and criminal law protections. The Note addresses central banks’ legal authority to issue rCBDC and operate payment platforms, the regulatory frameworks needed for intermediaries in two-tier distribution models, and the legal relationships between central banks, intermediaries, and users. Specific design features are analyzed, including limits on holdings and transactions, interest-bearing capabilities, programmability, and offline functionality. For wCBDC, the Note examines legal challenges related to tokenization, settlement finality, and central bank mandates to operate platforms for financial institutions. Throughout, the analysis draws on enacted laws and regulatory drafts from various jurisdictions, emphasizing that while the Note identifies legal considerations and potential approaches, it does not constitute a recommendation for jurisdictions to issue CBDCs. [Source: IMF]

Stablecoin Performance in Cross-Border Payments: Evidence from a Digital Dollar Wallet (Stanford FDCI)

The Stanford University Future of Digital Currency Initiative (FDCI) published a paper that examines the performance of dollar-based stablecoins in cross-border payments using a dataset of over 41 million transactions from Airtm, a digital dollar wallet platform, spanning May 2019 to May 2024. The analysis benchmarks transaction speed and cost against G20 Roadmap targets for enhancing cross-border payments. The findings indicate that stablecoins demonstrate substantial advantages in speed, with more than 96% of transactions settling within one hour, significantly exceeding the G20’s 75% target. Cost performance is more variable: approximately 51% of transactions meet the 3% fee target for remittances and 36.7% meet the 1% target for retail payments, though fees remain elevated for certain transaction types, particularly peer-to-peer marketplace on- and off-ramps. The study also highlights that stablecoins enable previously uneconomical use cases, with nearly half of enterprise disbursements being micropayments under $2. [Source: Stanford FDCI]

Upcoming Speaking Engagements:

The Cedi@60 Anniversary Currency Conference (Accra, Ghana, November 17-20) hosted by the Bank of Ghana, in partnership with Currency Research, will celebrate 60 years of the Ghanaian Cedi, bringing together leaders from across Africa and beyond to reflect on the currency’s legacy and chart its digital future. Learn about Ghana’s eCedi pilot and the future of sovereign digital currencies in Africa, and engage with innovators driving mobile money, QR code payments, and financial inclusion across the region. [Register here and get 15% off by using the Kiffmeister15 code!]

Kiffmeister’s #Fintech Daily Digest (20251114)

November 14, 2025November 14, 2025 ~ kiffmeister

Successful Live Trial of Settlement of Interbank Overnight Lending Using Wholesale CBDC (MAS)

The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) successfully completed a live trial for settlement of interbank overnight lending transactions using wholesale central bank digital currency (CBDC) on the Singapore Dollar Test Network (SGD Testnet). The trial involved three commercial banks, and featured the first live issuance of Singapore dollar wholesale CBDC, with transactions recorded in the banks’ official books and regulatory filings. The SGD Testnet offers functionalities including a common settlement asset, programmability for real-time conditional payments, and multi-asset atomic settlement, helping to reduce settlement risks and market fragmentation. MAS plans to build on this pilot by conducting a future trial for the issuance and settlement of tokenized MAS Bills via CBDC, with further details to be provided in 2026. [Source: MAS]

Cambodia and Singapore Launch Phase One of Their QR Payment Linkage (Fintech News)

Cambodia and Singapore have launched the first phase of a cross-border QR code payment linkage, enabling Cambodian travelers to use their Khmer Riel accounts to make fast, secure real-time payments in Singapore. Leveraging the Bakong app and participating mobile banking tools, users can scan SGQR merchant QR codes for instant transactions, eliminating the need for cash exchanges or physical cards. The initiative, unveiled at the Singapore Fintech Festival and supported by both public and private partners, aims to facilitate convenience for tourists, boost local currency usage in cross-border payments, and advance regional financial cooperation and digital innovation. This project aligns with goals to enhance trade, tourism, financial inclusion, and economic integration between the two nations. [Source: Bank of Cambodia]

MAS and Deutsche Bundesbank sign MoU on Tokenization and Cross-Border Settlement (MAS)

The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) and the Deutsche Bundesbank signed a Memorandum of Understanding to collaborate on cross-border digital asset settlement. This partnership aims to develop innovative settlement solutions to lower costs and speed up processing for cross-border transactions between Singapore and Germany. It also seeks to establish common standards for payments, foreign exchange, and securities involving tokenized assets to improve interoperability across digital asset platforms. Building on MAS’s Project Guardian, the agreement is expected to deepen financial connectivity, foster efficiency, and lay the groundwork for future digital financial infrastructure between both economies. [Source: MAS]

Project Guardian Fixed Income Workstream Update (ICMA)

The International Capital Market Association (ICMA) published two key technical deliverables to the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) Project Guardian Fixed Income Framework workstream. One was a guide for delivery versus payment (DvP) settlement of distributed ledger technology (DLT) based debt securities, comparing wholesale central bank digital currencies (CBDCs), tokenized bank deposits, and stablecoins. Each presents distinct opportunities and risks regarding counterparty exposure, liquidity, and operational considerations. Multiple settlement forms will coexist and require interoperability. Key challenges include legal clarity, custody arrangements, connectivity between on-chain and off-chain systems, and achieving settlement finality across different networks. The second deliverable was on lessons learned from custody arrangements for DLT-based debt securities, revealing common challenges. Key issues include determining whether tokenized securities require novel custody models or fit within traditional central securities depositories (CSDs), establishing legal clarity for investor eligibility, safeguarding private cryptographic keys, and integrating DLT platforms with existing systems. New contractual frameworks addressing roles, liabilities, and cross-border complexities are essential for scaling custody arrangements. [Source: ICMA]

Upcoming Speaking Engagements:

Kiffmeister’s #Fintech Daily Digest (20251113)

November 13, 2025November 13, 2025 ~ kiffmeister

HKMA Announces New Phase of Project Ensemble (HKMA)

The Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) has launched EnsembleTX, marking the new phase of Project Ensemble to enable real-value transactions in tokenized deposits and digital assets within a controlled pilot environment. Building on successful sandbox experiments since August 2024, this phase allows industry participants to settle digital asset transactions using tokenized deposits, initially focusing on transactions such as money market funds and real-time liquidity management. The project, running throughout 2026, will initially use the HKD RTGS system for interbank settlement and aims to facilitate 24/7 settlement in tokenized central bank money (CeBM), further developing Hong Kong’s tokenization ecosystem. HKMA and the Securities and Futures Commission will continue collaborating to advance practical applications of tokenization. [Source: HKMA]

BOE, MAS and BOT to Explore Cross-Border Synchronized FX Settlement (BOE)

The Bank of England (BOE), Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS), and Bank of Thailand (BOT) announced a collaborative project to examine the technical and policy aspects of synchronized settlement for foreign exchange (FX) transactions across borders. Building on insights from Project Meridian FX, the initiative will test interoperability and complex, multilateral use cases by leveraging simulated Real Time Gross Settlement (RTGS) systems and distributed ledger technology (DLT) environments. The goal is to enable atomic, real-time FX transactions that are fast, secure, and interoperable, potentially supporting payment-versus-payment FX settlement across various infrastructures and regulatory frameworks. [Source: BOE]

Upcoming Speaking Engagements: