Japan’s SBI Shinsei eyes tokenized crypto payments with new partnership

Japan’s SBI Shinsei Bank has partnered with Singapore-based Partior and Japan’s DeCurret DCP to explore multicurrency tokenized deposits for cross-border transactions.

The three signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on Tuesday, aiming to develop a blockchain-based settlement framework that supports real-time clearing in multiple currencies, according to an announcement.

DeCurret currently operates the DCJPY platform, which allows banks in Japan to issue yen-denominated tokenized deposits. SBI Shinsei plans to expand beyond the Japanese yen, aiming to issue tokenized deposits in other major currencies to meet the growing demand for faster international payments.

Partior brings a multicurrency settlement infrastructure already used by major financial institutions, including JP Morgan, DBS, Deutsche Bank and Standard Chartered. The platform supports US dollars, euros and Singapore dollars, and will now look to include the Japanese yen in this partnership.

Collaboration with Partior’s Interbank Currency Settlement Platform. Source: SBI

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24/7 global settlement network

The goal of the collaboration is to create a settlement system that is available 24/7. SBI Shinsei will focus on the issuance side, DeCurret will connect its DCJPY system to Partior’s international network, and Partior will integrate yen support into its platform.

“The three companies will soon begin discussions to define detailed roles and responsibilities with the aim of concluding a formal business collaboration agreement at an early stage,” according to the announcement.

If successful, the initiative could offer an alternative to traditional correspondent banking — where the correspondent bank opens and maintains an account for a respondent bank and handles its payments — by using distributed ledger technology to reduce settlement times and costs.

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Project Agora targets tokenized payments

Last year, the Bank for International Settlements (BIS) launched “Project Agora” in partnership with central banks from France, Japan, South Korea, Mexico, Switzerland, the UK and the US Federal Reserve. The project aims to connect tokenized commercial bank deposits with tokenized wholesale central bank money using a unified ledger concept.

The goal is to streamline global payments, reduce cross-border inefficiencies and enable smart contract functionality, while preserving the two-tier banking system.

Project Guardian, led by Singapore’s central bank (MAS) in collaboration with major financial institutions, is another large-scale initiative focused on using tokenization to improve speed, transparency and efficiency in lending, securities trading and forex transactions.

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