Singapore and Wakefield, Mass, 26 May 2021…The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) and the Mojaloop Foundation announced today that MAS is joining the Mojaloop Foundation as a Sponsor-level member to collaborate on providing the underserved access to affordable financial services through digital currency based settlement systems and foundational digital infrastructure[1]. MAS is the first central bank to join the Mojaloop Foundation.
The Mojaloop Foundation seeks to improve through financial inclusion the economic well-being of the 1.7 billion unbanked adults in the world. Mojaloop’s open-source software serves as a blueprint for organisations to build interoperable digital payment systems, and enable digital financial services for all.
The partnership between MAS and Mojaloop’s open-source community aims to bring together MAS’ policy development perspectives and Mojaloop’s digital payments capability to advance financial inclusion in emerging economies. The collaboration will also provide new opportunities for the FinTech ecosystems in Singapore and Asia-Pacific.
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[2]. Mr Sopnendu Mohanty, Chief FinTech Officer of MAS, will serve as an adviser to the Mojaloop Foundation’s Board of Directors, while Mr Alan Lim, Division Head, FinTech Infrastructure Office of MAS, will serve on the Technical Governing Board.
“The Mojaloop Foundation is very pleased to welcome MAS to be our newest Sponsor member,” said Paula Hunter, executive director of the Mojaloop Foundation. “The Mojaloop Foundation’s mission to increase financial inclusion is shaped by the potential of emerging economies to innovate and adopt efficient, interoperable domestic and cross-border applications, and MAS will bring valuable experience and expertise that will further our objectives.”
“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,” said Kosta Peric, chair of the Mojaloop Foundation and deputy director of the Financial Services for the Poor program at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. “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.”
“Technology guided by empathy can help bring innovative solutions to real-world problems and promote an inclusive economy. MAS is excited to join the Mojaloop Foundation to support its open-source technical development and contribute expertise on digital currency-based settlement infrastructure to Mojaloop’s payment system for domestic and cross-border transactions,” said Mohanty.
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About Monetary Authority of Singapore
The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) is Singapore’s central bank and integrated financial regulator. As a central bank, MAS promotes sustained, non-inflationary economic growth through the conduct of monetary policy and close macroeconomic surveillance and analysis. It manages Singapore’s exchange rate, official foreign reserves, and liquidity in the banking sector. As an integrated financial supervisor, MAS fosters a sound financial services sector through its prudential oversight of all financial institutions in Singapore – banks, insurers, capital market intermediaries, financial advisors, and stock exchanges. It is also responsible for well-functioning financial markets, sound conduct, and investor education. MAS also works with the financial industry to promote Singapore as a dynamic international financial centre. It facilitates the development of infrastructure, adoption of technology, and upgrading of skills in the financial industry.
About the Mojaloop Foundation
The Mojaloop Foundation’s mission is to increase financial inclusion by empowering organizations creating interoperable payment systems to enable digital financial services for all. Sponsor-level members include Coil, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Google, MAS, ModusBox, Omidyar Network, PhonePe, Ripple and The Rockefeller Foundation. To achieve its mission, Mojaloop Foundation operates as a 501(c)(3) charitable nonprofit organization, maintaining its free, open source software, Mojaloop, and community as public goods in the service of financial inclusion. Merchants, banks, providers, government offices and other entities looking to build inclusive payments platforms can use Mojaloop – whole, adapted, or as a real-time payments reference model. For more information about the Mojaloop Foundation, visit https://mojaloop.io/.
For media queries, please contact:
Jacqueline Ong
Deputy Director (Communications)
Monetary Authority of Singapore
Tel: +65 6229 9159
Email: jacqueline_ong@mas.gov.sg
Jessie Hennion
Mojaloop Foundation (Public Relations)
Tel: +1 781 876 6280
Email: jhennion@virtualinc.com
[1] See MAS report on critical infrastructure for an inclusive digital economy launched in April 2021.
[2] Project Ubin is a collaborative industry effort to explore the use of distributed ledger technology to clear and settle payments and securities more efficiently. More information here.
