The challenge is designed to identify innovative retail CBDC solutions that increase efficiency and promote financial inclusion.
Central bank digital currencies (CBDCs) are gaining momentum worldwide, with most governments at various stages of CBDC research, design or development. However, several hurdles remain before widespread adoption can be achieved. The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) is tackling some of these barriers.
In collaboration with the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, the Asian Development Bank and several United Nations entities, MAS announced the launch of a global retail CBDC challenge aimed at sourcing solutions for individual users.
Sopnendu Mohanty, MAS Chief FinTech Officer, said: “The world’s central banks are actively exploring the issuance of digital currencies and face a wide range of policy and technological challenges. Through the Global CBDC Challenge, MAS hopes to encourage innovation communities around the world to develop and present solutions that can maximise the potential of retail CBDCs to improve the efficiency of payment services and financial inclusion, while preserving the core mandate of central banks—to maintain monetary stability.”
Submissions are required to be cost-effective, broadly accessible and address twelve specific problem areas. These include decentralisation and accountability, recovery and privacy, expanding access to financial services, and protection against data monopolies.
Finalists will have the opportunity to test and refine their solutions using the APIX Digital Currency Sandbox, which integrates APIs from Mastercard, Partior, R3, the Mojaloop Foundation and APIX. Other technical partners supporting the initiative include Amazon Web Services and the open-source blockchain community Hyperledger.
Brian Behlendorf, Executive Director of Hyperledger, added: “The Hyperledger open-source community and its global blockchain expertise are well positioned to help participants tackle this exciting challenge. Hyperledger already supports a number of CBDC projects, and we recommend several Hyperledger DLT frameworks to participants for this challenge, including Hyperledger Besu, Fabric and Iroha.”
Interested teams have until 23 July to submit their proposals. Finalists will present their solutions during the Singapore FinTech Festival demonstration day later this year. Following presentations, up to three winners will be selected to receive awards of SGD 50,000 (approximately USD 37,000) each.