Regulated Banks Test Quantum-Secure Crypto Infrastructure with NEAR Pilot

A new quantum-resistant crypto pilot has gone live on the NEAR testnet, marking a significant step towards post-quantum readiness in the financial industry. Regulated banks and financial regulators from three continents are participating in the experiment.

The pilot is evaluating post-quantum cryptography for wallet generation and on-chain transfers using a multi-party computation protocol, which supports the ML-DSA-65 digital signature standard formalized by the US National Institute of Standards and Technology under FIPS 204. Safeheron is handling the engineering side, while the Responsible Fintech Institute leads governance and coordination across jurisdictions.

The involvement of banks such as Bison Bank and DK Bank is notable, as they are testing actual wallet and transfer operations on NEAR. Regulators from Abu Dhabi Global Market, Gelephu Financial Services Office (Bhutan), and Malta Financial Services Authority are observing the process firsthand. The goal is to build a compliance and security reference point for the industry.

The pilot is not happening in isolation, as momentum towards a quantum-safe blockchain 2026 standard has been building all year. The Bank for International Settlements published a paper on quantum-readiness for the financial system, calling for phased migration rather than a simple algorithm swap.