PRNewswire
Singapore, August 13: The Project Pigeon consortium, jointly convened by Elliptic, the Digital Asset Association (DAA), the Responsible Fintech Institute (RFI) and Baker McKenzie, today announced the formation of "Project Pigeon: A Working Group for Permissionless Blockchain Governance in APAC". This regional initiative is dedicated to advancing safe, compliant innovation on public blockchain networks, providing financial institutions with the frameworks necessary to operate securely within rapidly evolving regulatory landscapes.
The initiative takes its name from carrier pigeons, reflecting the consortium's goal of developing trusted governance frameworks that enable secure communication and value transfer across open, decentralized blockchain networks.
The launch of the working group follows the Monetary Authority of Singapore's (MAS) April 2026 Consultation Paper regarding the prudential treatment of crypto assets on permissionless blockchains. A primary objective of Project Pigeon is to help banks and financial institutions assess and address regulatory considerations raised in the consultation through the development of a framework structured around four fundamental risk pillars, each spearheaded by a designated consortium co-convenor:
- Governance Risk (led by RFI): Addressing node concentration, maintaining governance transparency, and ensuring strict accountability within decentralized ecosystems.
- Technology Risk (led by DAA): Mitigating threats such as 51% attacks, protocol vulnerabilities, smart contract exploits, and broader infrastructure risks.
- Settlement Finality Risk (led by Baker McKenzie): Evaluating consensus mechanisms, reconciling probabilistic versus deterministic finality, and establishing the legal certainty of settlement.
- AML/CFT Risk (led by Elliptic): Tackling challenges related to pseudonymity, implementing effective sanctions screening, leveraging advanced on-chain analytics, ensuring Travel Rule compliance and managing the linkage to prudential risk.
The working group brings together a diverse coalition of banks, crypto-native firms, digital asset exchanges, and legacy financial institutions operating across the Asia-Pacific (APAC) region. Underscoring the systemic importance of this initiative, Project Pigeon has established observer and consulting roles for leading regulatory bodies.
Baker McKenzie serves as the official secretariat to the consortium, providing comprehensive editorial oversight, supporting engagement with regulators, and managing the consortium's governance processes. This structured approach includes bi-weekly plenary sessions, focused meetings for the four workstream sub-groups, quarterly regulatory checkpoints, and monthly reviews conducted by the central Steering Committee comprising DAA, RFI, Elliptic, and Baker McKenzie.
The culmination of the consortium's efforts will be an authoritative industry guide, "Pigeon Permissionless Blockchains", which will set out a practical, end-to-end risk management lifecycle framework and executable guidelines for risk and compliance managers, referencing existing industry standards and regulatory guidance. This comprehensive publication will feature a detailed risk taxonomy, catalogues of risk events, preventive and detective controls, governance mechanisms, methodologies for controls testing, and protocols for issues management and reporting. Alongside the guide, the consortium will release a dedicated regulatory briefing paper tailored for supervisors across the APAC region. The target publication date for the industry guide is set for Q1 2027.
Underscoring the drive toward a unified framework, the consortium's workstream leads commented:
"Robust governance is the missing link between decentralized ideals and institutional reality. Our focus is on creating transparent accountability mechanisms that satisfy regulatory expectations without stifling innovation."
Chia Hock Lai, Chairman, Responsible Fintech Institute (RFI)
"The underlying technology of public chains is immensely powerful, yet undeniably complex. We are dedicated to producing actionable controls that shield financial institutions from protocol vulnerabilities and adversarial network actions."
Jag Foo, ExCo Member & Chair of Digital Assets Security Subcommittee, Digital Assets Association (DAA)
"Legal certainty is fundamental to the functioning of financial markets. As the use of permissionless blockchain networks continues to evolve, there is a growing need for greater clarity around the legal and governance considerations among financial institutions. Project Pigeon provides a platform to examine these issues and contribute to the development of practical approaches for the industry."
Stephanie Magnus, Principal, Financial Services Regulatory and FinTech, Baker McKenzie Wong & Leow
"As the adoption of permissionless chains accelerates, so too must our approach to financial crime compliance. By embedding advanced on-chain analytics and Travel Rule compliance directly into the operational lifecycle, we are ensuring that transparency and security go hand-in-hand."
June Lau, APAC Head of Policy and Regulatory Affairs, Elliptic
Interested financial institutions, technology providers and regulatory bodies are invited to participate in the working groups or contribute to the public consultation phase. To express interest, contribute expertise or receive official updates, please contact the Project Pigeon secretariat.
ABOUT PROJECT PIGEON
Project Pigeon is a regional working group and industry consortium focused on establishing governance and risk management standards for the use of permissionless blockchains by financial institutions in the APAC region. Convened by Elliptic, DAA, RFI, and Baker McKenzie, the initiative bridges the gap between decentralised technology and institutional regulatory compliance.
ABOUT ELLIPTIC
Elliptic is the global leader in cryptoasset risk management for crypto businesses, governments and financial institutions worldwide. Recognized as a World Economic Forum Technology Pioneer, Elliptic protects the cryptoasset economy from financial crime with advanced on-chain analytics and AML/CFT compliance solutions.
ABOUT THE DIGITAL ASSET ASSOCIATION (DAA)
The Digital Asset Association (DAA) is an industry body dedicated to fostering a responsible, secure, and innovative digital asset ecosystem. The DAA collaborates with policymakers, technology developers, and financial institutions to promote best practices and mitigate technology risks in blockchain infrastructure.
ABOUT THE RESPONSIBLE FINTECH INSTITUTE (RFI)
The Responsible Fintech Institute (RFI) is a global nonprofit organization based in Singapore. Our goal is to create a safe, trustworthy, and reliable future for digital finance by building the digital utilities to support responsible innovation. Our work involves bringing together different public and private sector stakeholders to help build the necessary rules and technology for new digital financial tools, making the digital asset world sustainable and inclusive for everyone.
ABOUT BAKER MCKENZIE WONG & LEOW
Baker McKenzie empowers clients to compete in the global economy. The Firm provides comprehensive and practical legal advice that cuts through complexity with clear, actionable guidance. Its people represent diverse cultures and jurisdictions, combining local know-how with international expertise to help businesses thrive across borders.
Baker McKenzie's global Fintech practice advises financial institutions, fintech innovators, digital asset businesses and technology companies on complex legal, regulatory and governance issues arising from emerging technologies and digital financial services. Drawing on experience across established and emerging markets, the team helps clients navigate evolving regulatory frameworks, assess legal and governance considerations, and support the responsible development and adoption of innovative financial services. Its work spans areas including digital assets, digital payments, tokenization, market infrastructure and other technology-enabled financial services.
Baker McKenzie Wong & Leow is the Singapore member firm of Baker McKenzie.
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