Ten major European financial institutions have come together to launch RL1, a shared blockchain infrastructure designed to support tokenized assets and digital currencies within a regulated environment. The Frankfurt-based fintech SWIAT, the driving force behind this project, announced the launch of RL1 as an independent European Cooperative Society headquartered in Luxembourg.
RL1 marks a new chapter in European finance by offering a permissioned blockchain network where banks can connect their tokenization efforts. New members Cecabank and Crédit Mutuel Alliance Fédérale joined founding participants like ABN AMRO, DekaBank, DZ BANK, LBBW, Natixis Corporate and Investment Banking, SC Ventures, Seturion, and Chartered Investment. Development support continues from KfW and L-Bank.
Building a unified digital capital market
Dr. Timo Reinschmidt, SWIAT's CEO, emphasized the significance of this alliance by stating that institutional backing reflects growing confidence in shared regulated infrastructure to unlock the potential of digital assets. Henning Vollbehr, who helped shape SWIAT's blockchain ecosystem over the last four years, now leads RL1 as managing director. Vollbehr highlighted how RL1 aims to replace isolated tokenization projects with a connected, liquid, and scalable capital market ecosystem across Europe.
SWIAT remains RL1's core technology provider, leveraging its production-ready distributed ledger that has processed over 50 transactions worth €700 million in three years. Among ongoing talks is potential collaboration with NatWest, signifying the project’s expanding influence. This initiative aligns with broader trends in regulated crypto finance, following developments such as banks pushing for tighter stablecoin yield controls in recent legislation and privacy enhancements for banks on Ethereum.
This material is for informational purposes only and does not constitute financial advice.
