According<\/a> to the Bank for International Settlements (BIS), Project Agor\u00e1 has tested how tokenized central bank reserves and commercial bank deposits can settle transactions on an \u201call-or-nothing\u201d basis, so neither side is left exposed if the other leg fails.<\/p>\nProject Agor\u00e1 tests tokenized bank money<\/h2>\n
Under today\u2019s system, the BIS said a cross-border transfer can pass through multiple intermediary banks before reaching the recipient, which can stretch settlement to days and add operational risk during reconciliation. In the Project Agor\u00e1 design, the BIS and participants used tokenization and blockchain-style rails to reduce handoffs and complete settlement simultaneously across jurisdictions.<\/p>\n
Project Agor\u00e1 is a joint effort between the BIS, seven central banks, and more than 40 private financial institutions. The BIS said participating central banks include the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, the Bank of England, the Bank of Japan, and the Swiss National Bank, as well as major commercial banks and financial firms.<\/p>\n
Project Agor\u00e1 launched in April 2024 and spent about a year and a half in a design phase before moving into a prototype stage in 2025, the BIS said. Active testing began in January 2026, which the BIS described as the point where the initiative moved past concept work and into something closer to an operating system.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Participants now plan to move beyond simulations toward tests that involve real-value transactions using selected currencies and institutions, the BIS said. During the same week, the BIS said the Bank of Canada joined the initiative.<\/p>\n
Tokenization efforts expand beyond payments<\/h2>\n
Outside the Agor\u00e1 workstream, the BIS noted that financial market infrastructure providers and exchanges are building tokenized settlement systems for traditional securities. The BIS pointed to DTCC\u2019s plan to roll out tokenized settlement infrastructure for stocks, ETFs, and U.S. Treasuries, while Nasdaq and Intercontinental Exchange are also developing blockchain-based systems for tokenized equities.<\/p>\n
Project Agor\u00e1 also sits alongside the G20\u2019s cross-border payments roadmap set in 2020. The BIS framed Agor\u00e1 as an attempt to show that unified ledgers and tokenization can deliver greater improvements than small changes to legacy payment plumbing.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
BIS links payments research to crypto risk warnings<\/h2>\n
Even as it promotes research on tokenization, the BIS has maintained a cautious tone toward privately issued crypto instruments. The BIS has warned that stablecoins could create risks for the financial system and has urged faster progress on stablecoin regulation.<\/p>\n
In addition, as previously reported by crypto.news last month, the BIS said crypto exchanges have operated as lightly regulated \u201cshadow banks,\u201d using customer deposits in ways that can increase leverage and contribute to large losses, including a $19 billion wipeout in 2025.\u00a0<\/p>\n
In that assessment, BIS noted that \u201cearn\u201d and savings-style products sold by exchanges function more like unsecured loans because platforms rehypothecate user assets into margin lending, proprietary trading, and market making.<\/p>\n
<\/p><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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