The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) has unveiled the BLOOM initiative, designed to extend settlement capabilities through collaboration with the financial industry. Announced on 16 October 2025, BLOOM—standing for Borderless, Liquid, Open, Online, Multi-currency—will facilitate settlements using tokenised bank liabilities and well-regulated stablecoins, whilst managing risks in the digital settlement asset landscape.
BLOOM builds on the foundation of Project Orchid, which explored the use of a digital Singapore dollar. Since its inception in 2021, Project Orchid has conducted over 10 trials, leading to market-ready solutions from participating financial institutions. BLOOM will cater to the increasing interest in tokenised bank liabilities and stablecoins, supporting multiple currencies and both domestic and cross-border payments.
The initiative will focus on several key areas:
– Distribution and clearing of settlement assets, with members like Circle, DBS, and OCBC working to streamline networks.
– Programmable controls for compliance checks, aiming to reduce costs and enhance consistency, with contributions from Ant International and StraitsX.
– Agentic payments, using AI to automate transactions, with involvement from Coinbase and DBS.
Kenneth Gay, Chief FinTech Officer at MAS, stated, “BLOOM enhances the range of settlement asset options for participants, complementing ongoing MAS-industry collaboration on asset tokenisation under Project Guardian.” MAS invites additional financial institutions and partners to join BLOOM, aiming to advance digital asset capabilities and financial innovation.
