DBS Bank partnered with Enterprise Singapore (ESG), a government agency under the Ministry of Trade and Industry in Singapore, and the Singapore Fintech Alliance (SFA), which promotes financial technology in the country, on the pilot.

DBS Bank Aims to Distribution of Government Grants Using Smart Contracts

During the pilot, SFA distributed government grants to 27 members. DBS said blockchain-based programmable grants could increase efficiency, improve governance and enable businesses to access government grants faster.

With DBS’s permissioned blockchain, intermediaries such as ESG and SFA can set the terms of programs and manage the distribution of grants. According to DBS, this process involves grants being given to approved recipients if certain business conditions are met.

Once the conditions are met, smart contracts verify that these conditions have been met. After this process, the grants are automatically distributed to the beneficiaries.

Might interest you: Whale Loses $55 Million in Devastating Crypto Hack

This solution increases management control while reducing the need for manual cash transactions by intermediaries. This allows businesses to receive cash payments from the government much faster.

In addition, the bank’s permissioned blockchain provides full visibility into the process, providing greater transparency to the organizations involved.

Learnings from MAS’ Project Orchid Initiative

DBS Bank said that the programmable grants pilot applies the bank’s learnings from MAS-led Project Orchid. The digital currency initiative is testing the benefits of tokenization with local stakeholders.

DBS has also collaborated with digital payment provider Ant International on a blockchain-based treasury and liquidity management solution. On August 13, DBS launched treasury tokens, which Ant will use for liquidity and treasury management. These tokens are hosted on the bank’s Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM) permissioned blockchain.

This solution was built using systems developed by the bank at Project Guardian, another digital currency initiative led by MAS.

You can also freely share your thoughts and comments about the topic in the comment section. Additionally, don’t forget to follow us on our Telegram, YouTube, and Twitter channels for the latest news and updates.

The post DBS Bank Launches Blockchain-Based Government Grants Pilot appeared first on Coin Engineer.

DBS clarified in a statement that this experiment runs on a permissioned blockchain, allowing Ant International businesses across several markets to manage multi-currency treasuries and liquidity.

The project specifically seeks to assist Ant International in lowering the settlement of intra-group transactions “from possibly days to seconds,” DBS stated. “This maximizes intra-group liquidity and working capital, giving corporate treasurers more visibility, predictability, and control over the whole group’s cash position,” the bank said.

According to Lim Soon Chong, group head of global transaction services at DBS Bank, the new pilot arrives “when the treasury needs of businesses are evolving to meet the rise of e-commerce and on-demand services on a 24/7 basis.” 

“DBS’ permissioned blockchain also forms the building block for new efficiencies and capabilities in traditional banking services, such as programmable, fractionalized, and atomic value transfer,” Lim said.

Head of platform technology at Ant International, Kelvin Li, said the pair has already seen usage cases in sectors such as rapid tax refund services and cross-border payments for small and midsize companies on the company’s Whale platform.

The latest treasury tokens from DBS Bank come from the bank’s involvement in Project Orchid and Project Guardian, both under the direction of the Monetary Authority of Singapore, in an effort to investigate tokenizing’s advantages.

You can also freely share your thoughts and comments about the topic in the comment section. Additionally, don’t forget to follow us on our Telegram, YouTube, and Twitter channels for the latest news and updates.

The post DBS Bank Tests Blockchain for Treasury Management appeared first on Coin Engineer.

Walter Hessert, Paxos’ head of strategy, emphasized the significance of MAS’s approval, stating, “Stablecoins issued in accordance with standards set by a regulator like MAS – known for its rigorous regulatory standards – represent a significant step towards democratizing access to commerce and financial services.” He highlighted that this approval enables Paxos and its global enterprise partners to securely provide access to US dollars to a broader user base worldwide.

Paxos is now authorized to issue stablecoins in the U.S., United Arab Emirates, and Singapore. The MAS Payment Institution (MPI) license is held by 19 firms involved in cryptocurrency and digital payment token services, including Paxos, Blockchain.com, Circle, and Coinbase. To obtain an MPI license, firms must meet criteria such as having a base capital of SGD $250,000 and maintaining a permanent place of business or registered office in Singapore.

In addition to regulatory approval, Paxos announced a strategic partnership with Singapore-based DBS Bank. This collaboration will focus on cash management needs and custodying stablecoin reserves. Evy Theunis, head of digital assets at DBS Bank’s institutional banking group, highlighted the bank’s extensive involvement in the digital asset ecosystem, which includes launching a fiat-to-crypto exchange in 2020 and partnering with Sandbox for a metaverse project.

The partnership underscores DBS Bank’s ongoing commitment to innovation in digital assets and further enhances its position in the evolving crypto landscape.

You can also freely share your thoughts and comments about the topic in the comment section. Additionally, don’t forget to follow us on our Telegram, YouTube, and Twitter channels for the latest news and updates.

The post Paxos Receives Full Approval from Singapore’s Central Bank, Partners with DBS Bank appeared first on Coin Engineer.