- The European Central Bank on Monday began letting banks settle tokenized wholesale transactions in central-bank money, connecting blockchain markets to the euro area's existing payment infrastructure via the Pontes project.
- Pontes is a bridge, not the end state: it will eventually be replaced by a longer-term solution known as Appia, for which a blueprint should be ready in 2028.
- The wholesale settlement launch runs alongside continued ECB efforts to develop a digital euro for consumers by the end of the decade.
Quotes
“The European Central Bank on Monday began letting banks settle tokenized wholesale transactions in central-bank money, while continuing efforts to develop a digital euro for consumers by the end of the decade.”
“The so-called Pontes project links blockchain markets with the euro area's existing payment systems.”