The Eurosystem has left open how Appia should connect tokenized wholesale finance, as 127 consultation responses highlighted trade-offs involving liquidity, market power and network flexibility.
The European Central Bank published the findings Oct. 28 after a consultation that ran from March 11 to April 22, 2026. It recorded submissions from public- and private-sector participants but selected no preferred model.
Potential advantages identified included greater efficiency and lower coordination costs. Respondents who favored one network argued that concentrating liquidity could reduce fragmentation and simplify governance. Others warned that activity concentrated on a single platform could increase its market power, make participants reliant on one technology and weaken incentives to innovate.
Several networks could accommodate different business models, respondents said. That approach would bring stronger interoperability requirements, while activity spread across platforms could divide liquidity, collateral and compliance processes. Many respondents proposed limiting central bank money settlement to a small number of eligible networks under common standards. The Eurosystem has taken no design or architecture decision.
Respondents also cited weak interoperability, gaps in common standards and “walled gardens” as conditions that could entrench incumbents and tie participants to platforms.
The Eurosystem launched Appia in 2025 to develop governance, standards and architecture for tokenized wholesale finance. It continues alongside Pontes, a separate service connecting distributed-ledger market platforms with TARGET Services. Since Sept. 21, Pontes has supported central bank money settlement for wholesale tokenized transactions. EconoTimes previously covered the ECB's invitation for banks to help shape tokenized-market standards.
ECB Executive Board member Piero Cipollone described the challenge as making existing and new financial infrastructure work together, saying they must “enable them to coexist.”
The next stage will turn consultation feedback into design choices before more complex, cross-cutting tests in 2027. The Eurosystem is targeting a blueprint for 2028.
