BIS opens call to private sector participants for Project Agorá

BIS Invites Collaboration with Private Sector for Project Agorá

The Bank for International Settlements (BIS) is reaching out to financial institutions from the private sector to explore the application of tokenisation in wholesale cross-border payments. BIS – Fintech news

BIS calls on the private sector to join Project Agorá

The bank is actively seeking participants for Project Agorá, welcoming commercial banks, deposit-taking institutions, financial market infrastructures, and critical service providers to apply. The application window extends until May 31, with the final list of participants scheduled for announcement on August 9.

Project Agorá, initiated by BIS in April, aims to evaluate the feasibility of a multi-currency ledger for cross-border payments, as outlined in the private sector application form.

This project will assess solutions capable of consolidating tokenised commercial bank money and tokenised wholesale central bank money within a public-private programmable core financial platform.

“The implementation of such a platform could enhance the efficiency of the monetary system and introduce innovative solutions using smart contracts and programmability, while maintaining its existing two-tier structure,” states the bank’s invitation for participation.

Several prominent institutions, including the Bank of France, Bank of Japan, Bank of Korea, Bank of Mexico, Swiss National Bank, Bank of England, and the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, have already subscribed to the initiative. The Institute of International Finance (IIF) serves as the convener and intermediary for private sector participants.

Advertisement

Participants in the final cohort will be expected to contribute technical expertise to aid in the design of the platform and test various use cases for cross-border payments within a two-tiered banking system.

Cecilia Skingsley, head of the BIS Innovation Hub, emphasized the project’s aim to address the complexities inherent in integrating multiple payment systems, accounting ledgers, and data registries.

“We are committed to not only testing the technology but also evaluating its performance within the specific operational, regulatory, and legal frameworks of the participating currencies, in collaboration with financial institutions operating in those jurisdictions.”

Source: fintechfutures.com