StraitsX to bring XSGD and XUSD to Monad, laying the groundwork for stablecoin-powered embedded finance

StraitsX plans to bring XSGD and XUSD, StraitsX's SGD- and USD-denominated stablecoins, natively to the Monad network in early 2027. XSGD is planned to become the first SGD-denominated stablecoin natively issued on Monad, subject to applicable technical, regulatory and compliance requirements.

StraitsX also intends to explore using Monad as a settlement network for a new stablecoin-powered embedded finance stack. This will enable fintechs, payment companies and consumer apps that StraitsX works with to offer payments, cards and settlement inside their own products, without building the regulated infrastructure themselves.

Regulated finance, embedded where people already are

Embedded finance is about bringing financial services to the apps and platforms people already use. The app owns the customer experience, and a licensed institution sits behind it, providing the regulated service and carrying out KYC. Customers get payments and cards where they already spend their time. Businesses get to launch those features while relying on licensed providers for the underlying regulated infrastructure.

StraitsX has spent years building that regulated layer. XSGD and XUSD are issued by StraitsX entities licensed as Major Payment Institutions under Singapore's Payment Services Act 2019. Both stablecoins have been recognized by the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) to be substantively compliant¹ with the upcoming single-currency stablecoin regulatory framework.

StraitsX has processed nearly US$70 billion in cumulative stablecoin transaction volume across its infrastructure to date. Its existing work includes a cross-border payment system with Grab and Ant International, which lets inbound tourists using Alipay+ partner apps pay at GrabPay merchants in Singapore, with merchants receiving immediate Singapore dollar settlement via XSGD.² StraitsX also provides stablecoin-backed card infrastructure, including Visa BIN sponsorship, alongside payment and settlement infrastructure for businesses across Asia.³

Together, StraitsX's regulated infrastructure and Monad's high-performance settlement layer aim to lower the barriers for businesses to integrate stablecoin-powered financial services, without having to build their own blockchain or regulated payment infrastructure.

The full lifecycle of money on Monad

Bringing XSGD and XUSD to Monad creates a path for stablecoins to move from fiat access and everyday payments through to settlement, within one embedded finance stack:

• In: fiat on-ramps and stablecoin issuance
• Spend: wallets, cross-border payments, and stablecoin-backed card programs
• Settle: merchant settlement and cross-border flows
• Manage: tools for businesses to manage the stablecoin balances behind their payments

StraitsX intends to initially explore two areas for its deployment on Monad:

• Card programs: new card programs on StraitsX infrastructure, with XSGD or XUSD as part of the underlying settlement.
• Payment and settlement flows: routing select payment and settlement flows through Monad, including cross-border corridors.

Each will be subject to further assessment and applicable regulatory, compliance and partner requirements before rollout.

Why Monad

Real-world payments require infrastructure that can process high volumes quickly and at low cost. Monad is designed for more than 10,000 transactions per second, produces blocks approximately every 300 milliseconds, and reaches full finality in 600 milliseconds, while remaining a public, EVM-compatible Layer 1.

Performance is only half the story. Because Monad is EVM-compatible, XSGD and XUSD issued natively on the network can connect with established wallets, payment providers and infrastructure, rather than being built around a proprietary environment. Every partner that integrates adds more places where those stablecoins can be used for payments and settlement.

Picture a traveller from Singapore tapping a stablecoin-backed card at a café abroad. The card rails work as they always have. Behind the scenes, the stablecoin leg of that transaction could settle on Monad in under a second, helping payment providers move funds more efficiently while maintaining the familiar card payment experience.

None of this comes at the expense of compliance. These applications would operate within applicable regulatory and compliance frameworks, including relevant KYC, anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism financing requirements, with responsibilities allocated among the participating regulated entities.

Looking ahead

StraitsX and Monad aim to bring stablecoin-powered financial services closer to the businesses and consumers that use them, connecting payments, cards, treasury and cross-border settlement through shared infrastructure.

Native issuance of XSGD and XUSD on Monad is planned for early 2027, and further updates on the embedded finance stack will be shared as the integration progresses.

This post contains forward-looking statements regarding planned integrations and potential future products. These plans are subject to change and any rollout will be subject to applicable technical, regulatory and compliance requirements being satisfied. Nothing in this post constitutes an offer of, or solicitation to use, any product or service in any jurisdiction.