ECB launches Pontes for tokenized asset settlement

The European Central Bank has introduced Pontes, a system designed to let financial institutions settle wholesale tokenized asset transactions in central bank money rather than using private settlement assets such as stablecoins. The ECB said the launch is part of the Eurosystem’s broader work on tokenized finance. Pontes starts with a limited set of services, and the central bank expects a fuller rollout by 2028 as more participants are added and operating hours expand. According to the ECB, tokenization can make wholesale markets more efficient by bringing issuance, trading, settlement, custody, and servicing onto the same digital infrastructure. The bank also said participants in earlier tests viewed access to a riskfree settlement asset as important for wider adoption of tokenized finance.