Convened by the Responsible Fintech Institute, with Safeheron as technology partner, the initiative aims to evaluate and eventually open-source quantum-resilient infrastructure for wallet generation and digital asset transfers in a regulated, cross-jurisdiction setting.

SINGAPORE, Aug. 24, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — The Responsible Fintech Institute (RFI) and Safeheron have launched a pilot initiative to evaluate post-quantum cryptography for digital asset transactions, with participation from selected financial institutions and regulatory stakeholders across multiple jurisdictions. The initiative is intended to move quantum-safe financial infrastructure from concept into practical testing with participating institutions.

The pilot will focus on a post-quantum cryptography (PQC) research program built around a multi-party computation (MPC) protocol that supports ML-DSA-65, the NIST FIPS 204 digital signature standard. FIPS 204, finalized by NIST in August 2024 as one of its first post-quantum cryptography standards, defines ML-DSA, the Module-Lattice Digital Signature Algorithm, with ML-DSA-65 as the parameter set targeting NIST security category 3. Participant testing will cover wallet generation and on-chain transfer activity on the quantum-resistant NEAR testnet — a relevant testbed given that many public blockchains rely on elliptic-curve signatures such as ECDSA, the class of public-key cryptography that post-quantum standards are designed to replace. The initiative brings together banks and regulators from multiple jurisdictions to examine cross-border interoperability, operational resilience and governance considerations alongside technical evaluation.

“No single bank, vendor, or regulator solves this alone,” said Chia Hock Lai, Chairman of the Responsible Fintech Institute. “By bringing policymakers and financial institutions across jurisdictions together to test the same post-quantum architecture, and transparently sharing that research with every participant, we are building a compliance and security reference the whole industry can stand on — and a standard we all helped write.”

“AI is accelerating the pace of change and likely bringing the quantum threat closer to reality — quantum-ready infrastructure has never been more critical, and the time to act is now,” said Jag Foo, Chief Security & Policy Officer at Safeheron. “By integrating NIST’s post-quantum signature standard with advanced MPC technology, we are building the architecture required to secure the next generation of financial networks. Safeheron has long advocated for open-source cryptography, because accountability and good governance demand it. We intend to open-source our PQC code. Cryptography securing institutional assets should stand up to independent scrutiny, not ask for trust.”

“As the financial sector prepares for future cybersecurity challenges, initiatives that encourage collaboration and knowledge-sharing among industry participants are increasingly important,” said António Henriques, CEO of Bison Bank. “We are pleased to support discussions around post-quantum security and to contribute to broader industry understanding of how financial institutions can prepare for the evolving risk landscape.”

“We welcome the industry’s initiative to identify a reliable protocol that safeguards digital asset transactions,” said David Peters, Managing Director of the Gelephu Financial Services Office. “Ensuring the continuing integrity of these transactions and protecting client funds is critical to the smooth functioning of the investment market.”

“Preparing for the potential impact of quantum computing on the financial system requires early engagement, collaboration and a better understanding of how post-quantum technologies can operate in practice,” said Alan Decelis, Head of Supervisory ICT Risk and Cybersecurity at the Malta Financial Services Authority. “The MFSA welcomes initiatives that bring together regulators, financial institutions and technology experts to explore these challenges in a controlled environment. Participating in this initiative provides a valuable opportunity to contribute a supervisory perspective while developing our understanding of the operational, governance and resilience considerations associated with the transition towards quantum-safe financial services.”

Why quantum-safe infrastructure matters

Quantum computing is widely expected to create long-term risks for the public-key cryptography that underpins large parts of today’s financial system, and financial-sector transition planning has become increasingly important. One widely cited concern is the “harvest now, decrypt later” scenario, in which encrypted data or exposed public keys captured today could be attacked once sufficiently capable quantum computers exist — a key reason migration planning has begun years before such machines are expected. As noted in a 2025 paper on quantum-readiness for the financial system published by the Bank for International Settlements (BIS), the transition requires coordinated planning, cryptographic agility and phased migration, rather than a simple algorithm swap. NIST’s own draft transition timeline points in the same direction, with widely used public-key algorithms such as RSA and elliptic-curve cryptography set to be deprecated after 2030 and disallowed after 2035.

At the same time, regulators are sharpening their focus on AI- and quantum-driven cyber risks. In July 2026, the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) and the Association of Banks in Singapore (ABS) announced the AI-Driven Cyber and Technology Risk Taskforce (ACT), an industry-wide initiative to strengthen collective cyber and technology resilience against emerging threats from frontier AI models. Regionally, the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) has embedded quantum readiness into its Fintech 2030 strategy, launching a Quantum Preparedness Index and whitepaper to benchmark banks’ transition to post-quantum cryptography and signaling an ambition to achieve full sectoral quantum-ready status by 2030.

Within this pilot, participating institutions will test a shared application environment that enables quantum-resistant MPC signing under consistent conditions, while regulators take part in an observer role during the first phase and contribute to a governance workstream in the next stage. The proof of concept also envisions publication of a whitepaper covering the research, protocol design and testing findings so that the wider market can assess and build on the results, reinforcing the sector’s collective learning and preparedness. The underlying protocol technology will eventually be open-sourced to maximize transparency, encourage independent security auditing and promote accountable, industry-wide standards.

About the pilot

The proof of concept is structured as a collaborative effort for regulated financial institutions, with Safeheron leading protocol and engineering work and the Responsible Fintech Institute leading governance, convening and cross-jurisdiction stakeholder coordination. Current participants include regulators such as Abu Dhabi Global Market (ADGM), Gelephu Financial Services Office (GFSO) and Malta Financial Services Authority (MFSA), alongside participating banks including Bison Bank and DK Bank, with additional institutions in discussion to join.

Participating financial institutions will help evaluate operational, governance and interoperability considerations associated with post-quantum cryptographic approaches. Levels of participation may vary depending on the role and scope agreed by each institution.

The pilot has been designed to stay close to real institutional operating models, including a tentative non-custodial 2-of-2 MPC participation design intended to minimize operational burden while preserving institutional control over key ownership. Its broader objective is to help the market better understand how secure digital asset transaction flows could evolve across regions as financial institutions prepare for a quantum-safe future, in alignment with evolving supervisory expectations on cyber resilience and quantum readiness.

About the Responsible Fintech Institute

The Responsible Fintech Institute is an independent nonprofit organization focused on bridging traditional and decentralized finance through standards, governance and responsible adoption. In this pilot, it convenes regulators, banks and market infrastructure stakeholders across jurisdictions and supports governance and publication of the initiative’s research findings.

About Safeheron

Safeheron is a digital asset custody and operating system infrastructure provider focused on advanced cryptographic infrastructure, including multi-party computation and trusted execution environment capabilities. In this pilot, it is responsible for the PQC-enabled MPC protocol, ML-DSA-65 signing implementation and the testing application used by approved participants.

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