Singapore & Germany Forge Blockchain Alliance: Central Banks Seal Tokenized Asset Settlement Deal

Two financial powerhouses just rewired the future of cross-border payments—no SWIFT, no intermediaries, just blockchain rails.

Tokenization Goes Global

The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) and Germany’s Bundesbank inked a landmark MoU today, linking their digital asset infrastructures. Tokenized bonds, forex, and securities can now move between jurisdictions at near-zero settlement latency.

Why This Burns the Old Playbook

Traditional correspondent banking—with its 3-day waits and 5% fees—just got a silent funeral. The pilot will use wholesale CBDCs and private stablecoins, sidestepping legacy systems entirely. (Take that, SWIFT.)

The Cynic’s Corner

Banks love ‘innovation’ when it means cutting costs—not so much when DeFi threatens their 20% profit margins. Watch how fast ‘collaboration’ turns to regulation once crypto bypasses their toll booths.

The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) and Deutsche Bundesbank have signed a memorandum of understanding to collaborate on cross-border digital asset settlement, aiming to reduce costs and processing times for international transactions between the two countries, according to an announcement Wednesday.

The agreement commits both central banks to fostering development of new settlement solutions for cross-border transfers and promoting common standards for payments, foreign exchange, and securities flows involving tokenised assets to enhance interoperability across digital platforms, according to a statement on Thursday.

The partnership builds on MAS' Project Guardian, an initiative bringing together policymakers and financial institutions to improve market liquidity and efficiency through asset tokenisation. The collaboration aims to strengthen financial connectivity between Singapore and Germany while laying groundwork for future digital financial infrastructure.

"Through this new partnership with the Deutsche Bundesbank on digital asset settlement, we hope to enhance financial connectivity in ways that benefit individuals, corporates and financial market participants in both our economies," said Leong Sing Chiong, MAS deputy managing director for markets and development.

The MoU was signed at the Singapore FinTech Festival by Leong alongside Deutsche Bundesbank executive board member Burkhard Balz and director general digital euro Alexandra Hachmeister.

"The partnership with MAS reflects our shared commitment to advancing new financial infrastructures," said Balz. "Together, we aim to foster technological innovation and set new standards for efficiency and interoperability in international payments and securities transactions."

Both central banks emphasized that the collaboration WOULD augment existing economic and financial cooperation between Singapore and Germany, two major financial hubs seeking to advance digital asset infrastructure and cross-border settlement capabilities.