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The Japan Financial Services Authority (FSA) joins the list of financial institutions that will play a collaborative role in Project Guardian, a digital asset initiative launched by the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS). Japan joins HSBC, the Bank for International Settlements (BIS) and other industry leaders through the 2017 Cooperation Framework with Singapore, aimed at fostering FinTech synergy, according to the press release.
Project Guardian, launched by MAS in 2022, aims to test and validate the application of digital technologies such as asset tokenization. It is expected to drive economic growth and improve investment options, as well as encourage collaboration between crypto industry leaders and policy makers. The pilot phase is currently being applied to the fixed income, foreign exchange, and asset and wealth management sectors:
“In this model, all participants interact with a common ledger (…) This allows direct exchange of digital assets without the need for bilateral configurations between organizations or with other networks.”
Additionally, Project Guardian seeks to foster collaboration between industry veterans and policy makers, exploring a diverse range of asset classes and gaining valuable insights for the evolution of digital asset networks.
Leong Sing Chiong, Deputy Managing Director of MAS, highlighted the potential for “greater public-private collaboration with FSA to support global efforts to develop a responsible and innovative digital asset ecosystem.”
Further acknowledging the complexities and risks associated with the rapidly expanding decentralized financial ecosystem, Mamoru Yanase, Deputy Director General of the FSA’s Strategy Development and Management Office, also highlighted the transformative opportunities of blockchain technology. and Web3.
Japan and Singapore revealed the creation of the cooperation framework in 2017 to strengthen fintech collaboration between the two nations.
As part of this, a referral system for fintech companies in each country is set up to expand their reach into the market of the other. Businesses are able to obtain information on the necessary regulatory structures, including licensing requirements to alleviate regulatory ambiguity and overcome barriers to entry.
“The framework also sets out how regulators plan to share and use information about financial services innovation in their respective markets,” according to the press release.
