Pontes will expand its services and operating hours gradually, with full implementation expected by 2028 and more participants set to join. The European Central Bank (ECB) launched Pontes, a system that allows financial institutions to settle wholesale tokenized asset transactions in central bank money, providing an alternative to private settlement assets such as stablecoins. The ECB announced Pontes’ launch on Monday as part of the Eurosystem’s strategy for tokenized finance. The system initially offers a core set of services, with full implementation expected by 2028. Tokenization represents assets as digital tokens, typically on distributed ledger technology (DLT) networks. The ECB said it could make wholesale transactions faster and more efficient by combining issuance, trading, settlement, custody and servicing on a single platform while enabling automation through smart contracts. Read more
The ECB aims to gain firsthand DLT market experience by buying tokenized public-sector securities and settling the trades through Pontes. The European Central Bank (ECB) is preparing to invest a “small portion” of its own funds in tokenized public-sector securities. The purchases will be settled in central bank money through Pontes, the Eurosystem’s settlement system for distributed ledger technology-based transactions launched Monday. The ECB said in a separate announcement Monday that the initiative will give it firsthand experience across the full investment lifecycle, including trade execution, settlement, systems and portfolio management. Read more