Home / Archive / R3 Partners Singapore’s Central Bank to Open Blockchain Lab

R3 Partners Singapore’s Central Bank to Open Blockchain Lab

Last Updated March 4, 2021 4:52 PM
Samburaj Das
Last Updated March 4, 2021 4:52 PM

 

Prominent enterprise blockchain startup R3 has collaborated with the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) to launch an exclusive blockchain lab in the country.

According to a press release, the ‘R3 Asia Lab’ will be the supported by the MAS – Singapore’s central bank and financial regulatory authority, to enable a collaborative effort between competing banks and financial institutions that focuses on blockchain-based solutions.

Furthermore, the R3 Asia Lab will also “accommodate visiting specialist DLT (distributed ledger technology) technologists, innovators and business leaders.” Picking Singapore as its base in Asia, R3’s move can be seen as the New York-based startup’s expansion effort to widen its presence in the continent.

 

In a statement, Sopnendu Mohanty, chief Fintech officer at Singapore’s central bank said:

The practical spin-offs from fundamental research in distributed ledgers and blockchains are beginning to be realized.

 

monetary-authority-of-singapore
MAS headquarters in Singapore.

“MAS is pleased to collaborate with the financial industry through broad, international consortia such as R3,” he further stated, “to create and conduct rigorous experiments that will inform and encourage adoption of these advances.”

R3 added that the new lab will house a number of senior staff members of its own supported by business and technology experts. Furthermore, representatives of its member banks, of which there are over 70 across the world, will also participate under the common roof of the lab.

The laboratory will be based in Lattice80, the world’s biggest Fintech-exclusive space  which, incidentally, opened its doors today (November 10). A 30,000-square-foot space, Lattice80 is located in Singapore’s Central Business District (CBD) and came to be realized with the help of the MAS.

A Fintech Destination

While companies like R3 and IBM continue to flock to Singapore for developing blockchain solutions, the country’s monetary authority is cementing Singapore’s status as a leading global Fintech hub.

Among several Fintech initiatives, the central bank recently partnered the Indian government, collaborating to develop blockchain solutions in the public sector. Within days, the MAS also revealed a partnership with South Korea for a similar endeavor.

The technology-forward country has also notably taken a bitcoin-friendly stance, with the cryptocurrency deemed “a sign of the future” by Singapore’s Prime Minister late last year.

 Images from Shutterstock and Facebook/Lattice80.