Odaily: The Hong Kong Monetary Authority plans to launch a wholesale central bank digital currency for interbank settlement by the end of this year, as part of Project EnsembleTX, to enable 24-hour settlement of tokenized deposit transactions.The project entered a real-transaction pilot phase in late 2025. Currently, cross-bank settlement still relies on a real-time gross settlement system that operates only during business hours; the wholesale CBDC is also planned for use in settling derivatives transactions during after-hours sessions on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, with related real-money transactions targeted to go live within this year.

Odaily reports: The Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) stated that under the Demat 2.0 pilot, three issuers have raised a cumulative 102.5 billion rupees (approximately $1.072 billion) through tokenized corporate bonds. The pilot utilizes distributed ledger technology to issue, hold, and settle corporate bonds.Among them, REC was the first to complete a 50 billion rupee fundraising on September 7, with 18 investors participating; L&T raised 50 billion rupees on September 9, subscribed by 4 investors; IIFL raised 2.5 billion rupees on the same day, subscribed by 1 investor.SEBI stated that Demat 2.0 records corporate bonds as native digital tokens on depository institutions' distributed ledgers, and connects to wholesale central bank digital currency (CBDC) through the Reserve Bank of India's (RBI) Unified Market Interface, enabling atomic settlement of bonds and funds, which is expected to shorten post-issuance fund settlement time from the traditional 2 to 3 days to same-day.SEBI emphasized that tokenized bonds do not constitute a new category of corporate bonds, and their ISIN, issuer obligations, coupons, maturity dates, covenants, ratings, and investor rights remain consistent with traditional electronic corporate bonds. Currently, the first phase of the pilot is aimed at institutional issuance, with secondary trading and retail investor participation to be advanced in subsequent phases. (The Block)

Odaily News: Japan's Financial Services Agency, the Ministry of Finance, the Bank of Japan, and major financial institutions plan to build a nationwide blockchain-based settlement infrastructure for stocks and Japanese government bonds (JGBs). A working group is expected to be established this summer, with related efforts slated to begin as early as 2027. If formal approval is granted and testing goes smoothly, the new system could become operational in the early 2030s.Under the plan, the Bank of Japan will convert a portion of reserves held at the central bank into digital tokens, serving as a wholesale CBDC for use among financial institutions. Currently, Japanese stocks and government bonds settle on T+2 and T+1 cycles, respectively. The new system aims to shorten both to near-real-time settlement. Additionally, major Japanese banks including MUFG, SMBC, and Mizuho have already conducted pilot programs involving tokenized stocks and Japanese government bonds. (CoinDesk)

Odaily News: LG CNS plans to launch blockchain services targeting the stablecoin ecosystem in September, covering functions such as digital wallets, transaction processing, fee payment on behalf of users, and on-chain data management. Lee Jung-hwa, head of the blockchain division at LG CNS, stated that wallets are the most important infrastructure in the stablecoin ecosystem, and entities that control wallets and fiat on/off ramps will occupy key positions in the future. LG CNS previously participated in the Bank of Korea's "Project Hangang," accumulating expertise in CBDC and deposit token technologies, and verified multiple on-chain settlement models through experiments.

Odaily Planet Daily News: The Governor of the State Bank of Pakistan stated that the central bank has launched an internal pilot project for its Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC).

Odaily News The Korea Internet & Security Agency (KISA) and the Ministry of Science and ICT have launched the "Deposit Token Payment Infrastructure Expansion Project," extending the outcomes of Korea's CBDC pilot, "Project Hangang," to the civilian payment sector. Directed by the Korea Financial Telecommunications & Clearings Institute, the project involves the participation of 9 banks, 8 payment gateways, and 2 large-scale demand-side entities, with a total budget of 9.6 billion KRW, aiming to reduce payment processing fees for small and micro merchants. The project leverages existing payment systems rather than building new infrastructure. Users complete payments through their bank deposit token wallets, and merchants do not need to replace their terminals. The government also plans to apply deposit tokens to a pilot for official business travel expenses and explore a treasury fund management model linked with dBrain.

Odaily reported that according to data from the Financial Supervisory Service, the Financial Supervisory Service of South Korea, the central bank of Korea did not conduct any independent security verification during the first phase of its CBDC pilot project. Security assessments were only carried out internally by the participating banks themselves before the project commenced. Prior to the project launch, only IT vulnerability self-assessments were conducted by the participating banks. These assessments were jointly executed by the Financial Security Institute, SK Shields, and the self-inspection teams of Woori Bank and Nonghyup Bank, forming an evaluation model characterized by "self-inspection by the regulated entity." In its pilot results report, the Bank of Korea acknowledged external concerns over the security of deposit tokens and responded that the preliminary reviews were sufficient. However, critics pointed out that this explanation is a self-assessment, not an independent third-party verification.

Odaily Planet Daily News The South Korean government has released a "Roadmap for the Internationalization of the Won," aiming to transition the currency from a regulated currency to a freely convertible one. The roadmap was jointly formulated by the Financial Services Commission, the Bank of Korea, the Financial Supervisory Service, and the Korea Securities Depository. The Bank of Korea also plans to advance a tokenized treasury bond pilot project linked to an institutional CBDC (Central Bank Digital Currency). Additionally, South Korea will participate in Project Agora, an international payment initiative led by the Bank for International Settlements (BIS). (coinpost)

Odaily Planet Daily News: The second phase of the Bank of Korea's CBDC pilot project, the "Han River Plan," is about to be launched. The Bank of Korea and commercial banks are making final preparations for the second phase of the real transaction testing of deposit tokens. If system development and participant recruitment preparations proceed as planned, actual transactions are expected to begin as early as September. In the first phase of transaction testing, conducted from April to June last year, 81,000 people participated through an electronic wallet, completing 114,900 transactions using deposit tokens. The first phase focused on examining the deposit token payment system, while the second phase will prioritize exploring commercialization. Additionally, in its second-half economic growth strategy released on the 15th, the Ministry of Economy and Finance announced that it will launch a pilot project next year for tokenizing government bonds linked to the Bank of Korea's institutional-grade central bank digital currency (CBDC).

Odaily Planet Daily News: The South Korean government today released a "Roadmap for the Internationalization of the Korean Won," aiming to transform the won from a regulated currency into a freely convertible currency and to establish an offshore won settlement network. The Bank of Korea will launch a system tentatively named the "Offshore Won Settlement Network," which is expected to begin trial operations in September this year and officially launch in January next year. South Korea will also build digital asset payment infrastructure to lay the foundation for the issuance, distribution, and trading of won-pegged stablecoins, and plans to launch a pilot project next year to promote the tokenization of government bonds linked to the central bank digital currency (CBDC) of the Bank of Korea. Additionally, South Korea will officially join Project Agora, a cross-border digital payment initiative led by the Bank for International Settlements (BIS) that brings together the central banks of eight countries.