The Czech National Bank has issued its first bonds on a blockchain ledger, the central bank announced on November 10, 2026. The koruna-denominated bonds were issued in tokenized form using distributed ledger technology, or DLT, through CNB Lab, the bank's in-house innovation unit.
The bonds were placed on a DLT platform maintained by the Central Securities Depository, known as CSD Prague. CSD Prague holds a significant distinction: it was the first infrastructure in the European Union to receive a license under the EU's DLT Pilot Regime.
Throughout October and November 2026, the CNB conducted tests covering the full lifecycle of a bond, including transfers, purchases and sales against payment, interest disbursements, and repo transactions. According to the CNB, all transactions settled nearly instantaneously.
Each bond carried a nominal value of CZK 10,000, with total test volumes amounting to tens of thousands of koruna. Česká spořitelna served as the CNB's sole commercial-bank counterparty in the tests. The CNB also purchased a euro-denominated government bond that exists exclusively on DLT as part of reserve management testing.
CNB Governor Aleš Michl identified two primary goals for the project. The first is enhancing the liquidity and tradability of koruna assets, particularly relative to alternatives such as German Bunds. The second is ensuring that settlement relies on central bank money rather than private instruments.
