The BIS Innovation Hub and central banks of France, Singapore and Switzerland are to explore cross-border central bank digital currency trading and settlement using decentralised finance (DeFi) protocols.
The project, named Project Mariana, will look at the use of automated market makers for the cross-border exchange of hypothetical Swiss franc, euro and Singapore dollar wholesale CBDCs between financial institutions to settle foreign exchange trades in financial markets.
Project Mariana, has three main objectives:
(i) explore the design and application of automated market makers for wholesale CBDCs;
(ii) investigate if a supra-regional network could work as an efficient and trusted hub for cross-border settlement; and
(iii) research wholesale CBDC governance models within that network.
A proof of concept is expected to be delivered by mid-2023.