What is Project Agorá and what did the BIS announce?

Project Agorá is a cross-border payments initiative led by the Bank for International Settlements (BIS), seven central banks and more than 40 financial institutions. The BIS announced that its two-year prototype successfully demonstrated how tokenised wholesale payments could settle in seconds rather than taking days.

Why does Project Agorá matter for global payments?

Cross-border payments are often slow, expensive and operationally complex because multiple banks and payment systems must coordinate transactions. Project Agorá suggests tokenisation could significantly reduce settlement times and improve efficiency for international payments.

How does Project Agorá work?

The platform uses a two-layer blockchain architecture that combines tokenised central bank reserves with tokenised commercial bank deposits. This structure allows transactions to settle atomically, meaning all parts of a transaction are completed simultaneously or the transaction does not occur at all.

What is atomic settlement and why is it important?

Atomic settlement means every balance update involved in a transaction happens at the same time. This reduces settlement risk because one party cannot receive funds while another party fails to complete its side of the transaction.

How is Project Agorá different from stablecoins?

The BIS said Project Agorá preserves the traditional two-tier banking system by using tokenised central bank money alongside commercial bank deposits. Unlike stablecoins, the system is designed to maintain what the BIS calls the "singleness of money," a principle it considers critical for financial stability.

Could Project Agorá make international payments faster?

Yes. According to the BIS, settlements can occur within seconds once funds are locked into the system. The platform is also designed to operate continuously, helping eliminate delays caused by different banking hours across countries.

What benefits could banks and financial institutions gain from Project Agorá?

The platform allows anti-money laundering, sanctions and fraud checks to occur in parallel rather than one after another. This could reduce processing delays and lower the number of false-positive compliance alerts that currently slow international payments.

Image for illustrative purposes only. Not a real photo.

BIS project Agorá advances tokenised payments

Q: Which central banks are participating in Project Agorá?

Participants include the Banque de France on behalf of the Eurosystem, the Bank of England, the Bank of Japan, the Bank of Korea, the Bank of Mexico, the Swiss National Bank and the Federal Reserve Bank of New York's Innovation Center. More than 40 private-sector financial institutions also participated.

Written by Brie CarterPublished May. 29 2026Last Updated May. 29 2026

The Bank for International Settlements said its Project Agorá prototype successfully demonstrated wholesale cross-border payments settling within seconds using tokenised central bank reserves and commercial bank deposits.

The two-year initiative brought together seven central banks and more than 40 financial institutions to test a blockchain-based platform designed to improve the speed and efficiency of international payments.

“The prototype also enhances transparency, as all parties to a transaction have access to real-time payment status while maintaining privacy from non-participating entities,”

The Bank for International Settlements said in its report.

Project Agorá uses a two-layer architecture that combines tokenised central bank reserves on jurisdictional ledgers with tokenised commercial bank deposits on a shared ledger to enable atomic settlement, where all balance updates occur simultaneously or not at all.

The BIS said the model preserves the traditional two-tier banking system and the singleness of money, which it described as fundamental to financial stability and distinct from stablecoin-based payment systems.

The project is now advancing to real-value testing involving selected currencies and participants, although the BIS has not yet provided a timeline for implementation.

Participating institutions included the Banque de France representing the Eurosystem, the Bank of England, the Bank of Japan, the Bank of Korea, the Bank of Mexico, the Swiss National Bank and the Federal Reserve Bank of New York’s Innovation Center, while further work is still required on cybersecurity, governance and liquidity management frameworks.