BIS Project Agora shows the risk of settlement of token payments

The Bank for International Settlements (BIS) released a report on Wednesday on Project Agora, a pilot model for cross-border wholesale payments.

BIS said the report shows how seven central banks and more than 40 regulated financial institutions can reduce credit and settlement risk through atomic settlement of cross-border wholesale payments within seconds of being locked out of the liquid.

The initiative marks one of a wide range of collaborations between central banks and private lenders that will explore how the token could modernize the global payments infrastructure.

The project, jointly convened by BIS and the Institute of International Finance, aims to address the slow and costly nature of international trade, which is putting pressure on global trade and financial activity. Cross-border payments will reach $195 trillion in 2024 and reach $320 trillion in 2032, according to FXC Intelligence, cited in the report.

Project Agora uses a two-layer blockchain architecture, combining ledger-based central bank deposits and tokenized commercial bank deposits on a common unified ledger to enable so-called atomic settlements where all accounting updates are made simultaneously or never.

The BIS approach maintains a “two-tier banking system” and “monetary singularity”, which it called “fundamental to financial stability”, distinguishing the project from stablecoin alternatives.

The platform allows institutions to conduct anti-money laundering, sanctions and anti-fraud activities in parallel, rather than sequentially, which BIS says can reduce the high rate of false positives that plague today's cross-border payments system.

Related: BIS warns dollar stable currency could hurt banks and policy

Project Agora moves into real value testing.

The project is progressing towards real-value testing of transactions involving specific currencies and participants, although BIS has not given an implementation timeline.

The report identifies areas that require further development, including liquidity management mechanisms, cyber security posture and governance frameworks covering the final stage of settlements.

Settlement takes place within seconds of funds being locked, and the platform is designed to operate around the clock, minimizing delays caused by erratic business hours across regions.

Bulk cross-border payments today with Project Agora. Source: BIS

“The model also adds transparency. All parties to the transaction can access real-time payment status while maintaining privacy from non-participants,” the BIS said in the report, adding that such visibility could be extended to end-users including borrowers and lenders.

Participating central banks include the Eurosystem, the Bank of Japan, the Bank of Korea, the Bank of Mexico, the Swiss National Bank, the Federal Reserve Bank of New York at the New York Innovation Center and the Banque de France representing the Bank of England.

Earlier this month, the Bank of England proposed extending settlement hours for its RTGS and CHAPS systems as part of a wider push towards 24/7 settlement.

Deputy Administrator Sarah Braden also said shared ledger and tokenization could make payments and payments faster and cheaper with fewer intermediaries and shorter settlement windows.

Cointelegraph reached out to BIS Media Group for comment on implementation timelines and management plans, but did not receive a response by press time.

Magazine: A Guide to Up and Emerging Global Crypto Hubs – Mid 2026