# Project Meridian FX: Synchronising the Future of Wholesale Payments

**8th July 2025**  
With:  
| John Jackson (Bank of England)  
| Stephanie Haffner (BIS Innovation Hub)

In this session, **John Jackson** (Bank of England) and **Stephanie Haffner** (BIS Innovation Hub) join FNA to discuss the breakthrough results of **Project Meridian FX**. Building on the original Meridian experiment (which focused on UK real estate), this initiative explores how a **Synchronization Operator (SO)** can orchestrate complex foreign exchange transactions across different jurisdictions and ledger technologies.

The project successfully demonstrated **Payment-versus-Payment (PvP)** settlement by interlinking the Bank of England’s RTGS system with three distinct Eurosystem solutions: the **Trigger Solution** (Deutsche Bundesbank), **TIPS Hash-Link** (Banca d’Italia), and **DL3S** (Banque de France). By using the SO as a neutral "orchestrator," the project proved that assets and funds can be "earmarked" and settled atomically, ensuring that one leg of a trade only moves if the other does—drastically reducing settlement risk.

**Key Discussion Points:**

- **The Synchronisation Operator (SO):** Understanding the SO as a technology-neutral interface that coordinates settlement without ever taking possession of the funds.
- **Interoperability at Scale:** How the project linked traditional RTGS systems with DLT-based settlement platforms, creating a hybrid environment for future innovation.
- **PvP Settlement Finality:** The mechanics of "atomic" FX transactions, where both legs of a cross-border trade settle simultaneously across different ledgers.
- **Liquidity Optimization:** Exploring "liquidity-saving mechanisms" (LSMs) and user-defined rules that allow banks to balance the need for speed with capital efficiency.
- **The "Lego-Like" Architecture:** Why the SO model is asset-agnostic and technology-agnostic, making it applicable to tokenized bonds, repos, and other asset classes beyond FX.

**Watch on Demand:**  
Listen on: [Spotify](https://open.spotify.com/episode/4OO7RHAFFiUELOuRXCz0nS?si=5287a50b5416467d&nd=1&dlsi=f5354c4eb45b44d7) | [Apple Podcasts](https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/payment-systems-broadcast-22-project-meridian-fx-synchronising/id1772649634?i=1000716488491) | [Amazon Music](https://music.amazon.co.uk/podcasts/93293cc8-fa9c-41a8-a3d7-86b413d78941/episodes/10c77815-a746-44e3-8b1b-71749c4dc18b/fna-broadcasts-payment-systems-broadcast-22---project-meridian-fx-synchronising-the-future-of-wholesale-payments)

**Missed our previous sessions?**  
You can catch up with The Payment Systems Broadcast on-demand. [View all episodes >](/content/insights?category=Payment%20Systems%20Broadcast/index.html)  
Or listen wherever you get your podcasts: [Spotify](https://open.spotify.com/episode/0wTNGVQvQMVWlCKqzXu5xx?si=b9d4fce15716478a) | [Apple](https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/payment-systems-broadcast-23-project-meridian-fx-cyber/id1772649634?i=1000725546180) | [Amazon Music](https://music.amazon.co.uk/podcasts/93293cc8-fa9c-41a8-a3d7-86b413d78941/episodes/f5c4b50e-b5a7-4104-b9a2-988a586fa42f/fna-broadcasts-payment-systems-broadcast-23---project-meridian-fx-cyber-resilience-insights-from-stress-testing)