ECB Launches Pontes Platform for Blockchain-Based Wholesale Transactions

The European Central Bank (ECB) has launched Pontes, a service that enables the settlement of blockchain-based wholesale transactions in central bank money. The platform connects distributed ledger technology platforms used by financial market participants with the Eurosystem's TARGET Services.

Pontes will initially operate between 8 a.m. and 4 p.m. CET on business days, with the ECB planning to extend its operating hours and functions over time. Deutsche Bank, Santander, and Clearstream are among the first institutions onboarded to the service.

The launch puts into operation a project that the central bank has been developing as financial institutions experiment with issuing, trading, and settling securities through distributed ledgers.