Singapore, Malaysia, and Thailand join forces to make stablecoin payments more convenient

Singapore has included Malaysia and Thailand in its BLOOM plan, enabling the central banks of three Southeast Asian countries to jointly establish a common approach for regulated stablecoins and tokenized bank deposits in cross-border transactions.

• The central banks of Malaysia and Thailand have joined Singapore's BLOOM initiative to coordinate cross-border digital currency settlements.
• Ripple, Mastercard, Maybank and other large payment companies have joined the expanded plan.
• The project covers regulated stablecoins, tokenized deposits, interoperability, and programmable compliance controls.
• Malaysia is testing a ringgit-backed stablecoin, while Thailand is seeking public feedback on the regulations for issuers of Thai baht-backed stablecoins.
• Ripple's RLUSD and Circle's USDC may benefit from a compatible settlement framework, but no regional approvals have been announced yet.

According to a announcement by the Monetary Authority of Singapore ( MAS ) on October 23, the Bank of Malaysia and the Bank of Thailand have joined the project as policy-making members. This collaboration will study how different forms of digital currencies can be accepted, exchanged, and settled between financial institutions, taking into account the varying national regulations of each country.

Three central banks expand the settlement work of BLOOM stablecoins

BLOOM is an abbreviation for Borderless, Liquid, Open, Online, and Multi-currency. Its purpose is to bring together regulatory authorities, banks, and payment companies to establish settlement arrangements for digital currencies. The latest expansion has included policymakers from Singapore, Malaysia, and Thailand in this initiative, while still allowing each jurisdiction to maintain its own regulatory requirements.

Participating institutions will focus on three areas: cross-border acceptance and settlement, interoperability between digital currency networks, and programmable transaction control. The third category includes authentication, sanctions screening, as well as restrictions that financial institutions may need to implement during international transfers.

MAS Deputy General Manager Leong Sing Chiong stated that cooperation is necessary, as financial markets will increasingly use various forms of digital currencies. He welcomes the participation of both central banks in formulating practical arrangements for cross-border settlements.

Deputy Governor of Bank Negara Malaysia, Aznan, bin, and Abdul Aziz, stated that using different digital currencies to achieve frictionless payments is becoming increasingly realistic. A corresponding official from Thailand, Daranee Saeju, indicated that BLOOM will provide a reference for the country's regulatory path in terms of tokenized currencies, especially in wholesale settlement and international payments.

Regulatory authorities have not announced any shared stablecoin licenses, common currencies, or operational settlement networks covering three countries. The agreement on October 23rd involved the establishment of frameworks and commercial arrangements among participating institutions.

Ripple and Circle enter into a broader regional discussion

MAS includes Ripple, Airwallex, Mastercard, Maybank, Monee, Nium, ShopeePay, Visa and the World Bank Group in the list of participants in BLOOM. Circle, Coinbase, JPMorgan Chase, DBS Bank, Anchorage Digital and Standard Chartered Bank are already existing members.

For Ripple, this participation is based on the RLUSD trade finance pilot project carried out in collaboration with Unloq. This pilot project explored ways to use XRP Ledger for settlement. The plan investigated how tokenized commercial transactions can link payment obligations with trade documents and financing conditions.

The inclusion of Ripple does not imply that Malaysia or Thailand has approved the use of RLUSD for domestic payments. MAS has not designated RLUSD as a mandatory settlement asset, nor has it announced the use of this token to establish a trading corridor under the expanded arrangements.

With the participation of Circle, this issuer of USDC was able to join discussions regarding regulated stablecoins and financial network interoperability. The announcement did not mention any new USDC pilots involving both central banks, nor did it confirm that USDC has obtained regulatory approval throughout Southeast Asia.

The plan previously included settlement pilots for Visa and Nium, researching the use of regulated stablecoins supported by the US dollar and euro for cross-border payments. Relevant companies are testing settlements outside of traditional bank business hours, including on weekends and public holidays.

Malaysia and Thailand are each advancing their own stablecoin regulations

Malaysia has been researching stablecoins denominated in the ringgit through its Digital Assets Innovation Centre. In February this year, the Bank of Malaysia announced three controlled pilots involving ringgit-stabilized coins and tokenized deposits for domestic and international wholesale payments.

The central bank stated that these experiments will provide references for its policy direction, and it is expected that there will be clearer regulatory guidelines by the end of 2026. Related work also includes the settlement of tokenized assets, as well as possible connections with research on wholesale central bank digital currencies.

Thailand has further entered the stage of publicly soliciting opinions on supporting stablecoins with the Thai baht. On October 20th, the country's central bank launched a consultation, proposing regulatory principles for issuers and wallet service providers, including reserve support, redemption guarantees, and transaction monitoring.

The Bank of Thailand regards Thai baht stablecoins as a potential supplement to the existing payment systems in its consultations. Its proposal sets different responsibilities for issuers and wallet service providers, while also putting forward requirements related to financial stability and network security.

The relevant work of both countries does not equate to adopting Singapore's stablecoin regulations. Singapore has also been advancing its own regulatory consultations regarding stablecoins, including proposals concerning issuers from overseas and the handling of interest.

BLOOM Focusing on Cross-Border Settlement Arrangements

MAS indicates that a general implementation framework can reduce the need for banks and payment companies to negotiate separate operational arrangements with each counterparty individually. This project will study the contractual arrangements, settlement procedures, and technical connections required between digital currency systems.

The World Bank Group will join as a multilateral development institution, bringing its expertise in payment system modernization and inclusive finance. Its participation also adds another stakeholder that focuses on the needs of developing economies to this project.

The announcement on October 23 did not specify the launch date of the tri-country settlement service, the volume of transactions, or a timeline for adopting common rules. The institutions participating in BLOOM will continue to develop and implement the framework, while the three central banks will still be responsible for their respective regulatory decisions.