Central bank money must anchor tokenised finance, Escrivá says
Bank of Spain Governor José Luis Escrivá called for preserving central bank money as the foundational anchor of tokenised financial systems. Speaking at the Mediterranean Central Banks conference on October 1, 2026, he outlined Eurosystem initiatives including Pontes and Appia.
Building bridges for wholesale tokens
Escrivá emphasized that distributed ledger platforms and stablecoins do not necessitate abandoning the two-tier monetary system.
Central bank money must remain the ultimate settlement asset to guarantee financial stability and the singleness of currency.
To support market innovation without creating isolated liquidity silos, the Eurosystem launched the Pontes operational bridge in September 2026, connecting approved distributed ledger platforms directly to TARGET Services.
Furthermore, the broader Appia initiative is scheduled to deliver a comprehensive blueprint for an integrated European tokenised wholesale ecosystem in 2028 in cooperation with market participants.
Friction across borders and retail cash
The adaptation of public money extends beyond wholesale markets to the digital euro, which aims to provide an accessible electronic public payment option alongside private channels.
Escrivá noted that while domestic payments occur in seconds, cross-border payments remain costly and slow due to regulatory and structural frictions.
Central banks are testing multi-currency solutions via BIS Project Agorá, linking fast-payment systems like Nexus and TIPS, and upgrading correspondent rails.
Anchors beat crypto dogma
Escrivá delivers a needed reality check by insisting distributed ledgers cannot replace sovereign monetary anchors.
Linking TARGET to DLT via Pontes prudently defends central bank settlement while accommodating market innovation.
Yet without harmonising cross-border legal rules, technical upgrades will not solve global payment bottlenecks.