The Responsible Fintech Institute (RFI) and Safeheron have announced a cross-regional initiative to test post-quantum cryptography for digital asset transactions, with participation from various banks and regulatory bodies.
This pilot program aims to evaluate how quantum-resistant infrastructure handles wallet generation and digital asset transfers. Safeheron will serve as the technology partner, while RFI will coordinate participant management and inter-jurisdictional collaboration.
The foundation of the program is a 2-of-2 Multi-Party Computation (MPC) protocol that supports ML-DSA-65, a digital signature standard from NIST FIPS 204. Researchers will assess wallet generation and on-chain transfers using a quantum-resistant testnet based on NEAR. Additionally, the program will examine cross-border compatibility, operational resilience, and governance requirements.
Participants include the Global Market Regulators of Abu Dhabi, the Financial Services Authority of Gelephu (Bhutan), the Financial Services Authority of Malta, along with Bison Bank and DK Bank.
In the initial phase, government entities will act as observers, with plans to engage in governance discussions in subsequent stages.
Following the testing, the authors intend to publish a white paper detailing their research, protocol design, and findings. They also plan to release the source code of the underlying protocol technology for independent auditing and industry use.
Representatives from RFI and Safeheron emphasized that the pilot's launch is aimed at proactively preparing critical financial infrastructure for the transition to post-quantum cryptography. The project is expected to demonstrate how such solutions perform within regulated financial organizations.
As a reminder, in August, the crypto bank Anchorage Digital introduced a strategy for preparing institutional assets for the post-quantum era.