Australia's First CBDC Foreign Exchange Transaction
Canvas was selected by the Reserve Bank of Australia and Digital Finance Cooperative Research Centre to participate in the eAUD pilot, demonstrating institutional-grade tokenised FX settlement.
Executive Summary
The Pilot
In 2023, the Reserve Bank of Australia and the Digital Finance Cooperative Research Centre (DFCRC) launched a pilot program to explore potential use cases for a central bank digital currency. The eAUD pilot tested a real claim on the RBA, placing Australia at the forefront of global CBDC research.
Why It Matters
Traditional FX markets suffer from settlement delays, counterparty risk, and opacity. The pilot demonstrated how CBDCs can enable instant, atomic settlement, fundamentally transforming how institutions exchange currencies across borders.
Canvas's Role
Canvas was selected as one of 14 participants from 142 submissions to develop the Tokenised FX Settlement use case. Using Canvas Connect, we built institutional-grade infrastructure enabling privacy-preserving foreign exchange transactions between eAUD and USDC.
The Impact
Canvas executed Australia's first-ever FX transaction using a CBDC, proving that blockchain infrastructure can meet the stringent requirements of institutional finance while delivering unprecedented speed and transparency.
Key Achievements
Landmark milestones achieved during the RBA eAUD pilot program
Canvas was chosen by the RBA and DFCRC from 142 industry submissions to participate in the pilot program.
Canvas executed Australia's historic first foreign exchange transaction using eAUD, converting to USDC on-chain.
Demonstrated instant, simultaneous settlement eliminating counterparty risk and settlement delays.
Canvas Connect's zero-knowledge infrastructure ensured confidential transactions with full regulatory compliance.
The Challenge: Modernising FX Settlement
Foreign exchange markets process over $7.5 trillion daily, yet the underlying infrastructure hasn't fundamentally evolved in decades. Transactions still take T+2 days to settle, exposing institutions to counterparty risk, requiring significant capital buffers, and creating opacity that benefits intermediaries at the expense of end users.
The emergence of blockchain technology and central bank digital currencies presented an opportunity to reimagine this infrastructure, but success required solving for institutional requirements: privacy, compliance, scalability, and integration with existing financial systems.
"CBDCs such as eAUD are fundamental building blocks of a digital economy and enable instant, secure and low-cost transactions."- David Lavecky, CEO, Canvas
Canvas Connect's Solution
Canvas leveraged its purpose-built Layer 2 blockchain, Canvas Connect, to enable the tokenised FX settlement use case. Unlike public blockchains, Canvas Connect was designed specifically for institutional finance, providing the privacy, compliance, and performance characteristics that regulated entities require.
The pilot demonstrated an eAUD to USDC foreign exchange transaction with atomic settlement, both legs of the trade executed simultaneously, eliminating settlement risk entirely. Zero-knowledge proofs ensured transaction confidentiality while maintaining the auditability required by regulators.
Key Outcomes & Learnings
Canvas Connect Capabilities
Purpose-built infrastructure that made the eAUD pilot possible
Zero-Knowledge Privacy
Transaction confidentiality maintained through ZK-proofs while preserving regulatory transparency.
Atomic Settlement
Simultaneous exchange of assets eliminating settlement risk and counterparty exposure.
Cross-Chain Interoperability
Seamless bridging between CBDC rails and public blockchain infrastructure.
Regulatory Compliance
Built-in ASIC and AUSTRAC compliance with auditable transaction trails.
Transaction Flow
How Canvas Connect enabled atomic FX settlement with eAUD
eAUD Issued
RBA issues pilot eAUD tokens
Canvas Connect
Privacy-preserving Layer 2 infrastructure
Atomic Swap
Simultaneous eAUD ↔ USDC exchange
Settled
Instant finality with full audit trail
Watch the Pilot in Action
See how Canvas and the DFCRC demonstrated the future of institutional finance
Video courtesy of the Digital Finance Cooperative Research Centre. View on Vimeo →
Pilot Participants
Canvas participated alongside Australia's leading financial institutions
ANZ
Offline payments, nature-based assets
Commonwealth Bank
Biodiversity credits, GST payments
Westpac
Certificates of deposit
Mastercard
Web3 commerce interoperability
Canvas
Tokenised FX settlement
Australian Bond Exchange
Corporate bond settlement
Official Pilot Organisers
Ready to Build on Institutional-Grade Infrastructure?
Canvas Connect powers the next generation of tokenised finance. From CBDCs to stablecoins, our infrastructure is proven in production. Speak with our team to explore how Canvas can transform your institutional workflows.