Building on the Australian Central Bank’s recent experimentation with its own digital currency (CBDC) in 2023, Imperium Markets chairman Rod Lewis highlighted the inclusion of Imperium Markets, Westpac, and Commonwealth Bank in the testing phase. Anticipated to continue until 2026, the pilot project aims to mitigate risks through the utilization of cutting-edge blockchain technology.
With over $1 trillion processed annually in Australia’s money market, the industry still heavily relies on manual data entry, leaving room for human errors. Moreover, the ecosystem faces operational and settlement risks that could potentially result in significant losses. Such problems could be effectively resolved through the implementation of blockchain, according to Imperium Markets’ leadership.
“Blockchain and distributed registry technologies possess the ability to streamline numerous market processes, which are currently arduous and time-consuming, relying on outdated technology, phone calls, emails, manual processing, and spreadsheets,” highlighted Rod Lewis.
DFCRC CEO Andreas Furche shared his belief that blockchain technology will provide unprecedented data transparency for all stakeholders and regulators. In addition to this, the pilot project will also explore the implementation of the delivery versus payment (DvP) method, focusing on developing digital solutions to enhance the efficiency of clearing and settlements between major market participants.
According to a comprehensive study conducted by cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase, asset tokenization is expected to gain increasing popularity over time. Notably, in November, financial corporation HSBC and Chinese company Ant Group successfully tested mutual settlements based on tokenized corporate deposits, indicating the growing acceptance and adoption of tokenization as a transformative financial solution.