Axiology, a fintech company based in Lithuania, has received authorisation under the European Union’s DLT Pilot Regime to operate a trading and settlement system using distributed ledger technology (DLT).
The authorisation, granted by the Bank of Lithuania in coordination with the European Central Bank (ECB) and the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA), makes Axiology the second entity in the EU to receive this approval and the first in Northern and Eastern Europe.
The license includes a financial brokerage firm authorisation and permission to operate a DLT-based trading and settlement system (DLT TSS).
This allows Axiology to manage a digital asset trading venue that integrates settlement, notary, and custody functions.
The platform supports the digital issuance, trading, and settlement of financial instruments using regulated e-money tokens (EMTs) for delivery-versus-payment settlement.
Axiology’s system is built on a permissioned version of the XRP Ledger, a blockchain protocol designed for secure and high-throughput financial transactions.
Axiology aims to address inefficiencies in European capital markets, where fragmentation and high intermediation costs continue to limit access for mid-sized corporate issuers and retail investors.
According to the company, its infrastructure reduces bond lifecycle costs by over 40 percent and eliminates traditional two-day settlement delays through atomic on-chain execution.
“Despite years of policy work, Europe’s capital markets remain costly, fragmented, and inaccessible to smaller participants,”
said Marius Jurgilas, CEO and Co-Founder of Axiology.
“This license allows us to operate the full capital market stack under a single, digital-native structure providing process synergies, cost savings and efficiency gains.”
The EU’s DLT Pilot Regime, implemented in 2023, provides a regulatory environment for market infrastructures that use distributed ledger technology.
It allows approved firms to operate blockchain-based trading and settlement systems under specific conditions and oversight.
Axiology’s technology has been tested with several central banks, including the National Bank of Georgia and Banco de la República in Colombia.
The firm also participated in digital euro trials led by the ECB, which included simulations of government bond issuance and settlement using the Bundesbank’s trigger solution.
The company supports the European Commission’s digital asset initiatives.
A June 2025 assessment by ESMA noted the role of the DLT Pilot Regime in promoting innovation in SME financing and post-trade processes.
The European Commission is expected to release its own position on the regime later this year.
Axiology provides regulated infrastructure for firms to launch digital bond products without building proprietary systems.
It is currently in discussions with Lithuania’s Ministry of Finance on the potential issuance of digital government bonds, including low-denomination products aimed at retail investors.
“We see a clear shift in market dynamics in the EU. Retail investors have shown strong appetite for high-yield opportunities but often through unregulated or overly speculative instruments like CFDs, binary options, or crypto,”
said Jurgilas.
“At the same time, the European bond market is experiencing record issuance, including from SMEs, non-investment grade issuers, as well as sovereigns. Axiology bridges these two realities enabling compliant, small-ticket access to fixed-income products that not only serve investor demand but also help finance Europe’s real economy.”
The company plans to collaborate with asset originators, broker-dealers, crowdfunding platforms, and neo-brokers that serve SMEs and retail investors.
Operations are expected to begin in autumn 2025, with expansion planned across the European Economic Area.
Featured image credit: Edited by Fintech News Baltic, based on image by Guillaume Périgois based on image by Unsplash
