- The 100 million euro bond of NRW.Bank on polygon shows that the public sector of Europe is now familiar with the blockchain.
- Germany’s EWPG law gives blockchain bonds the legal basis: no paper, no pen, only polygon and institutions that press “Send”
The NRW.Bank has placed its first completely blockchain-supported bond and thus set an important milestone in the increasing spread of token-based financial instruments in the public sector in Europe. The bond worth € 100 million that was emitted on the polygon blockchain shows the dynamics of the institutions in the integration of the DLT (distributed ledger technology) into the traditional capital markets.
The two-year bond is one of the largest blockchain-based emissions of a public facility in Europe.
German state development bank https://t.co/DVCNENaAQc announced the issuance of its first blockchain bond, totaling 100 million euros, which was registered on Polygon through Cashlink, a crypto securities registrar regulated by BaFin. https://t.co/eZU1otWrTX
— Wu Blockchain (@WuBlockchain) July 10, 2025
The transaction was carried out according to the German Law on Electronic Securities (EWPG), which enables the output of bonds in digital form without physical document.
This makes the NRW.Bank the first institute to use the blockchain infrastructure in line with German securities regulations. The emission was registered via the crypto value paper register operated by Cashlink Technologies, a provider of digital securities infrastructure licensed by BAFIN.
Legal basis and blockchain infrastructure
The EWPG introduced in 2021 enables the complete recording of securities on Distributed-Ledger systems and thus offers regulatory clarity for issuers of digital assets. It eliminates the requirement of paper -based bond certificates and opens the door for a scalable digital emission. The use of the polygon blockchain by the NRW.Bank underlines the growing importance of public blockchain networks for regulated financial transactions.
The infrastructure of cashlink ensures compliance with regulatory requirements for tokenized securities. The registration office’s Bafin license confirms its legal position in the management of cryptocurrencies within the framework of the EWPG. Through this approach, the NRW.Bank was able to switch off the intermediaries that traditionally participate in the securities processing and thus reduce the settlement time and the administrative costs.
Deutsche Bank, the DZ Bank and the Dekabank acted as a joint lead manager at the emission and ensured additional institutional credibility. The bond was strongly asked by professional investors, which is a sign of growing trust in blockchain-emitted assets.
Institutional participation and operational efficiency
The use of blockchain for the emission of securities brings with it several potential efficiency gains. The final of transactions is achieved faster than with conventional clearing systems. The transparency of the blockchain Ledger enables easier persecution of ownership and simplifies the examination procedures. The administrative costs are reduced by automation and less paperwork.
Institutional participation in the NRW.Bank bond reflects the broad acceptance of tokenized assets. Investors are increasingly seeing a value in faster handling, reduced counter -party risks and programmable functions that offer digital bonds. These advantages are particularly important in the public financial industry, where cost efficiency and transparency are strictly monitored.
According to a statement by Michael Duttlinger, CEO from Cashlink, emission is more than just a technological success. It shows that public institutions are willing to implement blockchain tools on a large scale and go beyond limited pilot projects.
A ripening digital capital market
While blockchain-based bonds still represent a small segment of the global bond market, the transactions of the NRW.Bank are included in a growing list of digital emissions that are approved by the supervisory authorities. The scope and profile of this emission underline the growing trust in the infrastructure and the legal support for token-based financing in Europe.
The use of polygon-a L2 network compatible with Ethereum-also reflects the growing acceptance of the use of public chains for high-quality, regulated transactions. These platforms offer scalability, security and interoperability with existing systems, which makes it suitable for institutional use.
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