Twenty-eight institutions, including JPMorgan, Citi, and UBS, have successfully completed Project Agorá’s tokenized payment tests, moving CHF 800,000 across six different currencies. The trials spanned 30 transactions within 17 scenarios, demonstrating new possibilities for cross-border payments using digital tokens representing real central bank reserves and bank deposits.
Wide Range of Payment Types Tested
The tests covered various payment flows such as corporate and interbank transfers, intragroup payments, and settlement mechanisms involving two currencies simultaneously. The platform ensured atomic settlement, meaning that transfers either completed fully or didn’t happen at all. Although this prototype operated separately from current real-time gross settlement systems, most transactions settled in about 80 seconds.
Collaboration Across Public and Private Sectors
Besides major commercial banks, central banks including the Bank of England, Bank of France, Bank of Japan, Bank of Korea, and Swiss National Bank joined the initiative. SIX handled coordination while blockchain provider Kaleido powered the platform. Around 250 professionals from payment, compliance, risk, legal, and technology teams took part, gaining real-time visibility into payment statuses and routing.
The project used standard ISO 20022 messages such as pacs.008, pacs.009, and camt.053, proving it can integrate with existing banking infrastructures internationally. This approach could help speed up cross-border transactions, reduce costs, and enhance transparency without replacing current systems.
This information is for educational purposes and not financial advice.
