German state-owned development bank NRW.BANK has issued a €100 million ($116.7m) blockchain-based bond, marking one of the largest public-sector moves yet into digital securities in Europe.
The two-year bond was issued on the Polygon blockchain and registered using the infrastructure of Cashlink Technologies, a BaFin-licensed crypto securities registrar. This is the first time NRW.BANK has issued a fully digital bond as a crypto security under Germany’s Electronic Securities Act (eWpG), which allows bonds to exist entirely on blockchain networks without a physical certificate.
The issuance attracted participation from institutional investors, with Deutsche Bank, DZ BANK and DekaBank acting as joint lead managers. The strong demand highlights growing market appetite for tokenized financial instruments that promise faster settlement times, transparent recordkeeping and reduced administrative costs.
“This is more than a technical milestone. It’s a signal that public financial institutions are ready to move beyond blockchain pilots and start integrating these systems at scale,” said Michael Duttlinger, CEO of Cashlink.
Germany’s eWpG law, introduced in 2021, has paved the way for securities to be registered on distributed ledger technology systems, offering a legal framework for digital bond issuance in one of Europe’s largest capital markets.
While blockchain bonds remain a small fraction of the overall bond market, recent moves by institutions like NRW.BANK suggest the infrastructure and regulatory frameworks are maturing. As more public issuers follow, it’s a step toward reshaping how traditional capital markets operate in the digital era.