KUALA LUMPUR, July 29 — Bursa Malaysia Bhd and Singapore’s financial technology (fintech) solutions provider Hashstacs Pte Ltd today embarked on a bond on blockchain proof-of-concept (POC) to facilitate the growth of the Labuan Financial Exchange’s (LFX) bond marketplace.

Bursa Malaysia chief executive officer Datuk Muhamad Umar Swift said the project, dubbed Project Harbour, aimed to explore and harness the opportunities afforded by blockchain technology and the tokenisation of assets.

“The POC conducted in partnership with Hashstacs presents an opportunity to provide a valuable learning experience to build knowledge and obtain insights that will allow us to grow the bond marketplace.

“The POC aims to increase operational efficiency, driving down the cost of operations as well as the cost of issuing bonds. We will continue to tap into emerging technological innovations to further develop the marketplace and improve the effectiveness and accessibility of the exchange,” he said in a statement.

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Meanwhile, Hashstacs managing director Benjamin Soh said the company would develop a blockchain solution to issue, service, trade and clear bonds on the platform.

“The creation of an industry-wide ecosystem will allow for a complete solution in the origination, servicing, trading, clearing and settlement, allowing Malaysia to potentially have the first-mover advantage in attracting regional and international bond listings,” he said.

Bursa Malaysia, alongside the Securities Commission of Malaysia, Labuan Financial Services Authority, CIMB Investment Bank Bhd, Maybank Investment Bank Bhd and China Construction Bank Corporation Labuan Branch, will utilise the Trident platform built by Hashstacs to test and manage the end-to-end trade lifecycle management of tokenised bonds.

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The blockchain-based platform will facilitate the issuance of tokenised bonds seamlessly while providing a single source of truth to maintain the integrity of investors holdings and track transactions.

In addition, smart contract technology automates the movement of funds and securities, amplifying asset servicing and the provision of liquidity to market participants. — Bernama