The Project Pigeon consortium, jointly convened by Elliptic, the Digital Asset Association (DAA), the Responsible Fintech Institute (RFI) and Baker McKenzie, has announced the creation of “Project Pigeon: A Working Group for Permissionless Blockchain Governance in APAC.” The regional initiative aims to support safe and compliant innovation on public blockchain networks by giving financial institutions practical frameworks for managing risks and regulatory obligations in a rapidly changing environment.
The initiative draws its name from carrier pigeons, symbolising the consortium’s ambition to establish trusted governance structures that facilitate secure communication and value transfer across open and decentralised blockchain ecosystems.
The working group has been launched following the Monetary Authority of Singapore’s (MAS) April 2026 Consultation Paper on the prudential treatment of crypto assets operating on permissionless blockchains. Project Pigeon will seek to help banks and other financial institutions understand and respond to the regulatory issues highlighted by MAS through a framework built around four key risk areas, with each workstream led by one of the consortium’s co-convenors:
The initiative draws its name from carrier pigeons, symbolising the consortium’s ambition to establish trusted governance structures that facilitate secure communication and value transfer across open and decentralised blockchain ecosystems.
The working group has been launched following the Monetary Authority of Singapore’s (MAS) April 2026 Consultation Paper on the prudential treatment of crypto assets operating on permissionless blockchains. Project Pigeon will seek to help banks and other financial institutions understand and respond to the regulatory issues highlighted by MAS through a framework built around four key risk areas, with each workstream led by one of the consortium’s co-convenors:
- Governance Risk – led by RFI: Focuses on issues including concentration of network nodes, governance transparency and clear accountability across decentralised ecosystems.
- Technology Risk – led by DAA: Addresses risks arising from 51% attacks, protocol weaknesses, smart contract vulnerabilities and wider infrastructure threats.
- Settlement Finality Risk – led by Baker McKenzie: Examines consensus mechanisms, the differences between probabilistic and deterministic finality, and the legal certainty surrounding blockchain-based settlement.
- AML/CFT Risk – led by Elliptic: Covers pseudonymity-related challenges, sanctions screening, on-chain analytics, Travel Rule compliance and the relationship between financial crime risks and prudential requirements.
The initiative brings together banks, crypto-native businesses, digital asset exchanges and established financial institutions from across the Asia-Pacific region. Given the potential systemic implications of permissionless blockchain adoption, the consortium has also created observer and consulting positions for prominent regulatory authorities.
Baker McKenzie will act as the consortium’s official secretariat, overseeing editorial activities, regulator engagement and governance administration. The working structure will include plenary meetings every two weeks, dedicated sessions for each of the four workstreams, quarterly regulatory engagement checkpoints and monthly assessments by a central Steering Committee made up of representatives from DAA, RFI, Elliptic and Baker McKenzie.
The consortium’s principal output will be an industry guide titled “Pigeon Permissionless Blockchains.” The publication is intended to provide financial institutions with a practical, end-to-end risk management lifecycle and actionable guidance for risk and compliance professionals. It will draw on established industry standards and regulatory requirements and is expected to cover risk classifications, risk-event catalogues, preventive and detective controls, governance arrangements, control-testing methodologies, as well as issue management and reporting procedures.
A separate regulatory briefing will also be produced for supervisors across the APAC region. The industry guide is currently scheduled for publication in Q1 2027.
Commenting on the initiative, the consortium’s workstream leaders highlighted the importance of developing a common approach to permissionless blockchain risk management.
Chia Hock Lai, Chairman of the Responsible Fintech Institute (RFI), said robust governance is essential to bridging the gap between decentralised blockchain principles and the requirements of institutional finance. The workstream will focus on developing transparent accountability structures capable of meeting regulatory expectations while preserving innovation.
Jag Foo, ExCo Member and Chair of the Digital Assets Security Subcommittee at the Digital Assets Association (DAA), said public blockchain technology offers significant potential but also presents considerable complexity. The DAA-led workstream will therefore focus on practical controls designed to protect financial institutions against protocol weaknesses and malicious network activity.
Stephanie Magnus, Principal, Financial Services Regulatory and FinTech at Baker McKenzie Wong & Leow, emphasised the importance of legal certainty as permissionless blockchain networks become increasingly relevant to financial markets. She noted that the project provides an opportunity to examine legal and governance questions and develop practical solutions for industry participants.
June Lau, APAC Head of Policy and Regulatory Affairs at Elliptic, highlighted the need for financial crime controls to evolve alongside the growing adoption of permissionless blockchain networks. She said the integration of on-chain analytics and Travel Rule compliance into operational processes can help strengthen both transparency and security.
Financial institutions, technology companies and regulatory organisations interested in participating are invited to join the working groups or take part in the public consultation process. Organisations wishing to contribute expertise or receive updates on Project Pigeon can contact the consortium’s secretariat.
Baker McKenzie will act as the consortium’s official secretariat, overseeing editorial activities, regulator engagement and governance administration. The working structure will include plenary meetings every two weeks, dedicated sessions for each of the four workstreams, quarterly regulatory engagement checkpoints and monthly assessments by a central Steering Committee made up of representatives from DAA, RFI, Elliptic and Baker McKenzie.
The consortium’s principal output will be an industry guide titled “Pigeon Permissionless Blockchains.” The publication is intended to provide financial institutions with a practical, end-to-end risk management lifecycle and actionable guidance for risk and compliance professionals. It will draw on established industry standards and regulatory requirements and is expected to cover risk classifications, risk-event catalogues, preventive and detective controls, governance arrangements, control-testing methodologies, as well as issue management and reporting procedures.
A separate regulatory briefing will also be produced for supervisors across the APAC region. The industry guide is currently scheduled for publication in Q1 2027.
Commenting on the initiative, the consortium’s workstream leaders highlighted the importance of developing a common approach to permissionless blockchain risk management.
Chia Hock Lai, Chairman of the Responsible Fintech Institute (RFI), said robust governance is essential to bridging the gap between decentralised blockchain principles and the requirements of institutional finance. The workstream will focus on developing transparent accountability structures capable of meeting regulatory expectations while preserving innovation.
Jag Foo, ExCo Member and Chair of the Digital Assets Security Subcommittee at the Digital Assets Association (DAA), said public blockchain technology offers significant potential but also presents considerable complexity. The DAA-led workstream will therefore focus on practical controls designed to protect financial institutions against protocol weaknesses and malicious network activity.
Stephanie Magnus, Principal, Financial Services Regulatory and FinTech at Baker McKenzie Wong & Leow, emphasised the importance of legal certainty as permissionless blockchain networks become increasingly relevant to financial markets. She noted that the project provides an opportunity to examine legal and governance questions and develop practical solutions for industry participants.
June Lau, APAC Head of Policy and Regulatory Affairs at Elliptic, highlighted the need for financial crime controls to evolve alongside the growing adoption of permissionless blockchain networks. She said the integration of on-chain analytics and Travel Rule compliance into operational processes can help strengthen both transparency and security.
Financial institutions, technology companies and regulatory organisations interested in participating are invited to join the working groups or take part in the public consultation process. Organisations wishing to contribute expertise or receive updates on Project Pigeon can contact the consortium’s secretariat.
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