Reserve Bank of Australia begins exploring crypto

​Australia has officially launched the second phase of its digital currency pilot, Project Acacia, a wide-ranging initiative led by the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) and the Digital Finance Cooperative Research Centre (DFCRC). 

Spanning six months, this stage is focused exclusively on wholesale financial use cases, incorporating 24 test scenarios that explore various types of digital money, including central bank digital currencies (CBDCs), stablecoins, and bank-issued deposit tokens, reports Cryptopolitan.

Notably, 19 scenarios will be tied to real financial transactions, while five will be simulated, covering sectors such as fixed income, private markets, carbon credits, trade receivables, and new account functions at the RBA.

The project’s primary goal is to evaluate how digital money and asset tokenization could enhance the efficiency, security, and transparency of Australia’s financial infrastructure. According to the RBA, the trial will push the boundaries of financial technology in the country and will inform future regulatory and operational frameworks. A full assessment and public verdict from the pilot are not expected until early 2026, leaving ample room for experimentation and iterative feedback from participants.

Australia’s biggest banks lead the digital currency charge

Commonwealth Bank (CBA), ANZ, and Westpac — three of the country’s largest financial institutions — are playing a central role in Project Acacia. CBA has teamed up with JPMorgan to pilot blockchain-based repo market transactions, a critical component of short-term funding and central bank monetary operations. CBA’s Sophie Gilder, Head of Blockchain and Digital Assets, stated that the repo market’s essential function in liquidity management makes it a natural candidate for innovation through tokenization, with the goal of reducing friction and operational risk.

ANZ is taking a different approach by testing tokenized trade payables, which could improve working capital efficiency and accelerate supplier payments, particularly for small businesses. Additionally, ANZ is exploring how wholesale CBDCs could enable real-time settlements in the fixed-income market, with potential benefits in cost reduction and transaction speed.

Although Westpac has not disclosed the full scope of its pilot, the bank has long been involved in blockchain and tokenization trials. Its continued participation reflects a broader industry shift toward testing how digital currencies can reshape traditional banking processes. As this phase of Project Acacia unfolds, each bank’s findings will contribute to shaping Australia’s broader digital asset regulatory landscape.

Regulatory flexibility fuels digital innovation

The bold scope of Project Acacia has been enabled by temporary legal exemptions granted by Australian regulators, including the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC). These allowances give pilot participants the freedom to experiment with unregulated digital assets, unlocking a broader set of financial innovations than would typically be permitted under standard compliance requirements.

This regulatory flexibility allows the RBA and DFCRC to thoroughly assess the risks and benefits of emerging technologies in a controlled environment, while maintaining oversight and consumer protection. Authorities emphasize that while some regulations are being temporarily eased, the pilot remains closely monitored to prevent misuse. This approach reflects a growing recognition that responsible experimentation is essential if Australia wants to remain competitive in the global digital economy.

As the pilot progresses, the results from these real-world experiments are expected to influence national policy, helping define the future of CBDCs, stablecoins, and other forms of programmable digital money in Australia’s financial ecosystem.

Recently we wrote that in a significant development for digital finance and aviation, Emirates and Dubai Duty Free have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with global crypto platform Crypto․com to explore the integration of cryptocurrency payments across their retail and operational services.