MAS and Temasek release Project Ubin Phase 5 report

By Edil Corneille

The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) and Temasek have jointly released the “Project Ubin Phase 5: Enabling Broad Ecosystem Opportunities” report today to mark the conclusion of the 5th and final phase of Project Ubin. Technical insights into a blockchain-based multi-currency payments network prototype are provided in the report which also expounds on ways the network could benefit the financial industry and blockchain ecosystem.

Accenture was commissioned to publish the report which examines the use of blockchain technology in commercial applications across different industries, and how these applications could benefit from integrating with the blockchain-based payments network prototype developed. These benefits were validated through workshops conducted with over 40 financial and non-financial firms engaged in Phase 5 of Project Ubin.

Sopnendu Mohanty, Chief FinTech Officer, MAS enunciated, “…Project Ubin has worked with the financial industry and blockchain community on a journey of experimentation, prototyping and learning. This has built a strong foundation of knowledge, expertise and experience, and paved a path towards commercial adoption…”

Chia Song Hwee, Deputy Chief Executive Officer, Temasek elucidated, “…Phase 5 of Project Ubin has demonstrated the commercial applicability, viability and benefits of blockchain technology across industries, beyond capital markets and trade finance. This validates Temasek’s efforts in exploring and building blockchain solutions focusing on digital identity, digital currencies and financial asset tokenisation…”

The payments network prototype, developed in collaboration with J.P. Morgan and Temasek, can serve as a test network to facilitate collaboration with other central banks and the financial industry for developing cross-border payments infrastructure. Technical specifications for the functionalities and connectivity interfaces of the prototype network have been made publicly available to spur further industry development.

Lay Lim Teo, Accenture’s country managing director for Singapore stated, “Through Project Ubin, we have identified areas where blockchain-based solutions can be deployed at scale and drive greater payment efficiency across industries. The financial ecosystem is an integral part of Singapore’s ambition to be a Smart Nation. The collaboration between financial and non-financial firms to create the network necessary to support multi-currency payments will also drive new products and services that generate new revenue streams.”

Umar Farooq, Managing Director & Head of Blockchain, J.P. Morgan said, “…We have been an active contributor to Project Ubin since its inception, leveraging our learnings and infrastructure including Quorum, Interbank Information Network (IIN) and JPM Coin. Phase 5 has demonstrated how broadly blockchain technology can impact the future of business and we look forward to working with MAS, Temasek and other banks to develop and scale commercial solutions for the industry.”