The Bank of England selected Chainlink as one of 18 participants in its new Synchronisation Lab, an experimental program set to launch in spring 2026. The lab will run for about six months.
The goal is to test how blockchain-based assets can settle alongside sterling balances held at the central bank. The program forms part of the Bank’s broader Real-Time Gross Settlement (RTGS) upgrade, known as RT2.
Participants will connect to a simulated RT2 environment through dedicated APIs and a user interface. No real funds will move, and no regulatory approval is required for participation; results will guide future live design decisions.
The project builds on Project Meridian, which previously showed that a synchronization operator model is technically possible.
Chainlink will focus on decentralized settlement workflows. The objective is atomic settlement, in which both sides of a transaction are completed at the same time. That means tokenized securities and central bank money settle in sync.
The structure promises no time gap as well as no settlement mismatch risk.
Chainlink, known for connecting smart contracts to real-world data through decentralized oracles, will design infrastructure that links tokenized assets with central bank funds. UAC Labs AG will work on similar decentralized coordination models.
(adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});The Bank of England confirmed the lab will simulate interaction between asset registries, payment providers, and the RT2 system. The findings may support the UK’s Digital Securities Sandbox framework.
At the same time, UK regulators are consulting on systemic stablecoin rules, including tokens backed by government bonds or central bank deposits. The lab runs parallel to those policy discussions.
Chainlink joins major financial infrastructure firms in the trial. Swift will explore foreign exchange settlement use cases. London Stock Exchange Group (LSEG) will test tokenized bond settlement. Partior will examine synchronized cross-border and collateral transactions. ClearToken, Nuvante, and other firms are also participating.
The lab will conclude with an industry showcase and a final report outlining lessons and technical findings.
The Bank of England stated the Synchronisation Lab will test flexibility and ecosystem readiness before any live deployment of RT2 synchronization features.
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