ECB report and next steps on the use of new technologies for the settlement of wholesale transactions in central bank money

1 July 2025

Today, the ECB published its Report on 'Bridging innovation and stability: the Eurosystem's exploratory work on new technologies for wholesale central bank money settlement', presenting the key findings of the exploratory work carried out by the Eurosystem with 64 market participants across different sectors and countries between May and November 2024.

In February 2025, the ECB Governing Council decided to expand its initiative to settle transactions recorded on distributed ledger technology (DLT) in central bank money, with the approval of a two-track plan. Today, the ECB has confirmed the launch of a short-term track called Pontes - which includes a pilot project to link DLT platforms and TARGET Services by end- 2026 - and of a long-term track, called Appia, to shape future-ready, innovative and integrated financial ecosystems in collaboration with public and private stakeholders. To ensure continuous dialogue with the market, a call for expressions of interest in participating in the Pontes contact group will be published soon.

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