[Philippine Central Bank: Wholesale CBDC Can Be Used for Securities Settlement and Cross-Border Payments] The Philippine Central Bank (BSP) stated in its recently released 'Project Agila' report that potential applications for wholesale central bank digital currency (wCBDC) include financial securities settlement and large-scale cross-border payments. wCBDC allows commercial banks and financial institutions to open accounts with the central bank and conduct real-time peer-to-peer settlements using distributed ledger technology. This approach is expected to maintain a structure similar to the existing RTGS system while achieving higher automation, faster processing speeds, and lower transaction costs. BSP noted that using wCBDC for securities transaction settlement can help shorten the time gap between trade execution and final settlement, reduce settlement risks, and provide a foundation for developing subsequent CBDC roadmaps based on the project's findings.