Back in June 2025, Prime Minister Dato’ Seri Anwar Ibrahim launched a new Digital Asset Innovation Hub. The hub was designed to support the development of digital assets and fintech in the country.
According to him, its focus also included programmable money and a ringgit-backed stablecoin.
Fast-forward to now, and five ringgit stablecoin and tokenised deposit initiatives are currently being developed in various stages in Malaysia, according to Fintech New’s latest Malaysia Fintech Report 2026.
Initiatives Developed Under the Digital Asset Innovation Hub
Bank Negara Malaysia announced in February 2026 that it had onboarded three initiatives with Maybank, CIMB, Standard Chartered and Capital A, aiming to “test real-world applications involving ringgit stablecoins and tokenised deposits.
1. Tokenised Deposits with CIMB
In August 2026, CIMB completed a pilot for testing the settlement of tokenised sukuk, using tokenised deposits in a controlled environment.
The pilot involved a RM1.68 billion issuance under CIMB Bank’s RM10 billion Senior Sukuk Wakalah programme, with tenors ranging from 5-15 years. 12 institutional investors were able to subscribe to the tokenised portion, while the remaining RM300 million was issued as traditional sukuk.
Notably, the tokenisation layer did not affect the sukuk’s underlying economic or Shariah structure. CIMB also shared that it has engaged with the Securities Commission of Malaysia to build tokenised capital market products.
2. Tokenised Deposits with Maybank
In March 2026, Maybank completed its first on-chain transaction in the MYR-SGD corridor, which involved tokenised deposits, FX conversion, as well as a cross-border payment to Singapore.
The bank’s pilot transaction was completed with Yinson Holdings. It comprised tokenising bank deposits, converting MYR into SGD on-chain and transferring the funds from Malaysia to Singapore in almost real-time via Maybank’s permissioned blockchain.
3. Ringgit Stablecoin with Standard Chartered Bank and Capital A
Standard Chartered Malaysia and Capital A signed a letter of intent in December 2025 to explore a ringgit-denominated stablecoin through BNM’s Digital Asset Innovation Hub.
Standard Chartered Malaysia would act as issuer, while Capital A and its group of companies would develop and trial real-world applications, which may include pilots for enterprise operations.
Gerard Ang, the Head, Financing & Securities Services (Malaysia) at Standard Chartered, recently told a panel during LIDAC 2026 that their pilot shows why institutions may see value where consumers do not.
Gross settlement, where each payment settles individually instead of being netted against others, could make value transfer between organisations more efficient, he said.
He also saw cross-border payments as one of the more convincing use cases, pointing to the cost and speed of correspondent banking as reasons businesses may look for another way to settle across markets.
Ringgit Stablecoin Initiatives by Other Firms
Two of the five initiatives are ringgit stablecoins that private companies have already issued: JMYR from Bullish Aim and Zetrix, as well as the MYRC from BLOX.
4. Ringgit stablecoin by BLOX
According to BLOX’s CEO and co-founder Ethan Chung, the development of its MYRC, a ringgit stablecoin in Malaysia, came from an idea to test how blockchain-based settlements could support tokenised assets and automated payment workflows.
MYRC is backed 1-to-1 by Malaysian Ringgit, and its users can receive and pay out in both fiat and MYRC, respectively. According to its website, as of the end of August 2026, there are over RM1.8 million in circulating MYRC.
BLOX has also since raised US$1 million in seed funding, led by Kivo Technology, the tech investment arm of a Singapore-based venture fund. The company intends to use the funding to grow MYRC, develop products for businesses and institutions alike, while funding its broader expansion plans.
5. Ringgit Stablecoin by Bullish Aim and Zetrix
In December 2025, a ringgit-backed stablecoin issued on Zetrix came live in Johor. The initiative aimed to support Malaysia’s Digital Asset National Policy and was in partnership with Bullish Aim Sdn Bhd, chaired and owned by Tunku Ismail Ibni Sultan Ibrahim, the Regent of Johor.
The RMJDT stablecoin has since been renamed to JMYR, and the MYR-pegged stablecoin is fully backed by cash and cash equivalents, where 1 JMYR equals RM1.
JMYR positions itself as a stablecoin for everyone in the digital economy, from individuals to businesses and builders.
Based on JMYR’s roadmap, its Phase 2 begins at home, with wallet, app and merchant integrations across Malaysia. Phase 3 then looks outward to ASEAN cross-border settlement corridors, before reaching toward the final Phase 4, which zeroes in on tokenised-asset markets and the wider Web3 economy.
However, the projects could possibly face some uncertainty given recent developments involving Zetrix AI. The Securities Commission Malaysia (SC) has reportedly visited Zetrix AI’s headquarters in connection with an investigation, according to sources.
Separately, the government is moving to take legal action against Zetrix AI and its subsidiary MyEG over RM314 million in government revenue collections made via the Road Transport Department (JPJ).
Zetrix AI has confirmed the amount owed, with no timeline for a resolution as of 8 October 2026.
More Developments Are Lining Up
Beyond these five initiatives, more developments are quickly taking place. OCBC and Ant International have launched a tokenised deposit solution for liquidity transfers and corporate treasury management between Malaysia and Singapore.
The service runs on Ant International’s WhaleRTP platform, which is capable of connecting blockchain assets from various financial institutions. Using blockchain technology, the transfers create an immutable audit trail and enable the movement of Singapore and US dollar liquidity across borders, beyond regular banking hours.
The bigger question is which of these models will scale. Its answer will decide how far digital ringgit goes beyond today’s pilots and early stages.
These insights on the five ringgit stablecoin and tokenised deposit initiatives come from our latest Malaysia Fintech Report 2026. Download the full report for more insights on Malaysia’s fintech landscape.
Featured image by tunanonphotographer on Magnific
