- The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS), which is the country’s central bank, will be joining the Mojaloop Foundation as part of a push to improve economic wellbeing.
- The Mojaloop Foundation exists to improve financial inclusion around the world – and MAS will be the very first central bank to join it.
- A senior figure at the Mojaloop Foundation said that it envisioned a world in which everybody had access to financial services through their mobile phones.
A major central bank in Asia has confirmed that it will be joining a foundation designed to boost financial inclusion.
The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) said that it will be joining the Mojaloop Foundation to work towards shared goals.
According to press reports, MAS is the first ever central bank anywhere in the world to join the group.
The Mojaloop Foundation is designed to improve financial inclusion among the billions of adults worldwide who are designated as ‘unbanked’ – meaning that they have limited or no access to certain financial services.
The Mojaloop Foundation, which provides ‘economic wellbeing’, offers open source software that helps financial services organisations to put together what are known as ‘interoperable’ systems for online money transfers.
The organisation will work alongside MAS as part of a knowledge sharing collaboration.
Central bank policy views will be combined with the digital payment functions of the Mojaloop Foundation – with the shared aim of improving access to financial services.
In a statement, a senior leader at the Mojaloop Foundation said that increasing productivity was one of the organisation’s goals.
Kosta Peric, who is the chair of the Mojaloop Foundation, also emphasised that the organisation was striving for a more universal, accessible and mobile phone-led financial world.
“Our vision of universal financial inclusion is a world where everyone, everywhere can access and use the financial services they need to lead a more productive life, using a simple mobile phone,” he said.
He also added that MAS has a strong record when it comes to payments innovation.
“MAS’ track record of innovation in regulation and payments brings credibility, new rigor and talent to the Mojaloop community, which can help our partners drive broader adoption of inclusive domestic and cross-border payment platforms that reach and benefit the poor,” he explained.
The Mojaloop Foundation has a number of well-known sponsor members.
These include the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation as well as private firms such as the blockchain-powered payments service Ripple and Google.
The press release announcing the new arrangement also referred to a research scheme looking into the feasibility of central bank blockchain usage in Singapore.
“MAS will provide policy perspectives and technical guidance that can contribute to the mission of the Foundation, building on its experience with Project Ubin’s Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC) development efforts,” it said.
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