Bank Negara Malaysia and the Bank of Thailand have joined Singapore’s BLOOM initiative as policymaker members, expanding the cross-border stablecoin project. Launched by the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) in October 2025, BLOOM is a public-private effort designed to help financial institutions utilize stablecoins and tokenized deposits for cross-border payments. The initiative aims to reduce costs and accelerate service deployment by minimizing the need for bilateral arrangements between counterparties. BLOOM builds on Project Orchid, which began in 2021 to explore digital Singapore dollar applications, and covers corporate cash management, trade finance, and AI-agent-executed payments within predefined limits. Current participants include Airwallex, Mastercard, Ripple, Visa, and the World Bank Group. This development follows Bank Negara Malaysia’s February announcement that three initiatives would test ringgit stablecoins and tokenized deposits for domestic and cross-border wholesale payments in 2026.
The inclusion of Malaysia and Thailand central banks signals a shift from isolated national pilots toward coordinated regional infrastructure for digital asset settlement. By aligning with Singapore’s established framework, these nations are leveraging existing technical standards rather than building proprietary systems from scratch, potentially accelerating interoperability across Southeast Asia. This move underscores the growing consensus among regulators that tokenized deposits and stablecoins can streamline cross-border liquidity without compromising monetary sovereignty.
However, operational risks remain regarding the integration of diverse regulatory regimes into a single technical layer. While MAS emphasizes cost reduction and speed, the practical execution depends on harmonizing compliance protocols for anti-money laundering and data privacy across jurisdictions. The involvement of major payment networks like Visa and Mastercard suggests commercial readiness, but the success of BLOOM will hinge on whether participating central banks can maintain consistent oversight while allowing private-sector innovation to drive efficiency in real-time settlement scenarios.
