UK, Singapore, and Thailand central banks test cross-border FX settlement as stablecoins gain ground
The Bank of England and its counterparts in Singapore and Thailand demonstrated how to coordinate cross-border currency payments across conventional and blockchain-based systems without requiring identical infrastructure.
The project, known as Meridian FX APAC, tested payment-versus-payment (PvP) settlement, ensuring that one currency changes only when the corresponding payment in another currency also takes place.
The experiment also tested multilateral netting, allowing banks to offset payment obligations rather than settling every transaction individually, reducing their liquidity requirements.
Stablecoins gain ground
The work comes as stablecoins increasingly offer an alternative to conventional cross-border payments, promising faster transfers and around-the-clock availability.
Project Meridian FX APAC provides practical evidence of how synchronised settlement could help reduce risk and improve efficiency in cross-border FX transactions.
Next steps
The Bank of England plans to introduce a live synchronization interface in 2028, although further work is needed on legal arrangements, regulatory oversight and broader participation before the technology can be deployed commercially.
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