The European Central Bank (ECB) has approved a dual-track plan to settle transactions using central bank funds through distributed ledger technology (DLT), which could pave the way for the modernization of the European financial system.
The first track, named Pontes, will focus on short-term solutions by connecting blockchain-based DLT platforms with TARGET Services. TARGET Services is a set of financial services developed and operated by the euro system, designed to facilitate the flow of payments and securities within the euro area.
The ECB stated on Tuesday that the Pontes pilot is expected to launch by the end of the third quarter of 2026. This pilot will leverage insights from the ECB's 2024 DLT exploratory experiment, which involved over 50 experiments and 64 participants to test a unified settlement system using central bank funds.
The ECB wrote, "This decision aligns with the euro system's commitment to support innovation while not compromising on the safety and efficiency of financial market infrastructure."
The second track, named Appia, takes a long-term approach aimed at developing "a European integrated ecosystem while promoting secure and efficient operations at a global level."
Appia will see the ECB continue to explore the application of DLT in wholesale central bank settlements while closely collaborating with public and private partners.
The euro system will also establish market contact groups for Pontes and Appia to maintain dialogue with industry stakeholders and gather feedback. A call for expressions of interest to join the Pontes group will be issued soon.
The plan comes at a time when central banks worldwide are exploring how blockchain can simplify settlements while maintaining control over the flow of funds.
In 2023, the Bank of England successfully tested the use of DLT for large-scale interbank transactions through an experiment conducted by the Bank for International Settlements (BIS) Innovation Hub in London. It demonstrated a prototype that could accelerate and reduce costs by connecting real-time gross settlement (RTGS) systems with other financial infrastructures and ledgers.
Cointelegraph has reached out to the ECB for comments but has not received a response as of the time of publication.
The ECB also released a report detailing the results of its recent DLT exploratory work. The report confirmed a strong market demand for settling tokenized assets using central bank funds, with €1.6 billion ($1.88 billion) settled in an experiment involving 64 participants in Europe.
The findings suggest that DLT can reduce "fragmentation, complexity, and technological inefficiency" in capital markets by enabling atomic and programmable settlements.
However, the report noted the need for standardized, unified legal frameworks, as well as "the establishment of interoperability links with TARGET Services as soon as possible."
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Original: “ECB to pilot blockchain-based euro settlement system in 2026”
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