BIS Project on Tokenization for Cross-Border Payments

A BIS-led initiative indicates that tokenization could significantly enhance the efficiency and safety of cross-border payments.

FinanceShareShare this articleCopy linkX (Twitter)LinkedIn Facebook EmailBIS Project Reveals Tokenization Can Enhance Cross-Border Payments

Project Agorá, supported by key central banks, is set to advance to "real-value" testing to facilitate tokenized central bank currency and bank deposits on blockchain platforms.

By Krisztian Sandor|Edited by Jamie Crawley May 27, 2026, 3:45 p.m. 2 min readMake preferred on The Bank for International Settlements in Basel, Switzerland (Fred Romero/Flickr)

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Project Agorá, which is backed by the Bank for International Settlements, determined that tokenizing central bank reserves and commercial bank deposits could notably enhance the speed and dependability of international payments.
With the involvement of major central banks such as the New York Fed, Bank of England, and Bank of Japan, the initiative is transitioning from simulations to testing actual transactions.
Tokenization is gaining traction among major financial institutions on Wall Street to modernize financial systems by integrating assets like stocks and bonds onto blockchain platforms.

An important study conducted by the Bank for International Settlements (BIS) revealed that tokenization has the potential to address significant challenges in cross-border payments, such as lengthy settlement periods and expensive bank reconciliations.

Project Agorá, a collaborative effort involving the BIS, seven central banks, and over 40 private financial institutions, concluded that tokenized central bank reserves and commercial bank deposits can facilitate atomic settlement across different currencies and regions.

Atomic settlement ensures transactions are completed on an "all-or-nothing" basis, minimizing the risk of partial failures in cross-border payments.

This initiative includes participation from the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, the Bank of England, the Bank of Japan, the Swiss National Bank, and various large commercial banks and financial institutions.

Members of Project Agorá are now preparing to progress from simulations to testing real-value transactions involving select currencies and institutions, with the Bank of Canada joining the project this week.

The findings come as global banks and asset managers accelerate their own tokenization initiatives. DTCC, the clearinghouse for Wall Street, is gearing up to launch its tokenized settlement infrastructure for stocks, ETFs, and U.S. Treasuries, while both Nasdaq and the Intercontinental Exchange, which owns the NYSE, are developing blockchain-based systems for tokenized stock trading.

Currently, cross-border transfers often have to navigate through multiple intermediary banks, leading to delays of several days and introducing operational risks. The report indicates that implementing tokenization and blockchain technology could reduce these delays and the incidence of failed payments in the global financial system.

The BIS, frequently referred to as the "central bank for central banks," has intensified its research efforts related to blockchain and tokenization as governments and financial institutions reconsider the movement of money and securities worldwide.

Nonetheless, the agency has cautioned that stablecoins, which are digital currencies linked to fiat money issued by private firms on the blockchain, may pose risks to the financial system, advocating for expedited regulation in this area.

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