ISDA & Ant International are proposing that the industry embrace using tokenized bank liabilities and shared ledgers for FX settlement and more.
A new report backed by regulators and financial services industry groups aims to set the stage for using tokenized bank liabilities and shared ledgers in cross-border payments and foreign exchange (FX) settlement.
The initiative falls under Project Guardian, a global effort led by the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) to enhance liquidity and efficiency in financial markets through asset tokenization.
The report was published by the International Swaps and Derivatives Association (ISDA) and Ant International, a global provider of digital payments and financial technology. Both organizations co-lead the FX work stream under Project Guardian, focusing on developing FX data standards, risk frameworks, and documentation. Other members of the group include BNY, HSBC, OCBC, and the Global Foreign Exchange Division of the Global Financial Markets Association.
The report outlines proposed principles for leveraging tokenized bank liabilities and shared ledger technology in transaction banking. These include design guidelines to standardize practices and enable interoperability; identification of key risks and mitigation strategies for shared-ledger-based payments; and use cases demonstrating real-time, 24/7 FX settlement and faster, more secure cross-border payments.
The report’s authors are calling for a universal framework to support industry-wide adoption — an effort they hope will slash global transaction costs and improve liquidity management.
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