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Fnality appoints Cunliffe, Metzger, and Berndsen
10 September 2026 UK and Europe
Image: Add win/stock.adobe.com
Fnality, a blockchain-based settlement infrastructure provider, has appointed two former central bankers to the Fnality UK board of directors and Fnality Europe supervisory board.
Sir Jon Cunliffe, a former Deputy Governor for Financial Stability at the Bank of England, will become chair of Fnality’s UK board of directors.
Bringing three decades of experience in financial market infrastructure, payment systems oversight, and global regulatory policy, he also served on the Bank’s Financial Policy Committee and Monetary Policy Committee, chaired the committee on Payments and Market Infrastructures at the Bank for International Settlements (BIS), and sat on the G20 Financial Stability Board Steering Committee.
Jochen Metzger, a former director general for Payments and Settlement Systems at Deutsche Bundesbank, has been appointed to Fnality Europe’s new supervisory board, and is expected to serve as its chair.
He brings more than 30 years of experience in payments, clearing, and settlement infrastructure, having also served on the committee on Payments and Market Infrastructures at the BIS, sat on the Eurosystem’s Market Infrastructure Board, and played a leading role in the development of TARGET2, T2S, and TIPS.
Prof Dr. Ron Berndsen has also been appointed to the Fnality Europe’s supervisory board.
A former head of Oversight and head of Market Infrastructures Policy at De Nederlandsche Bank, he is currently a senior independent non-executive director of LCH Ltd and LCH SA and chairs the risk committees of both entities.
Fnality says that the appointments of these leading figures in payments and market infrastructure supervision reinforces its commitment to scaling a global network of regional payment systems, each dedicated to meeting the highest standards of central bank policy, governance, and applicable regulatory requirements.
Michelle Neal, group CEO of Fnality, says: “Having spent their careers overseeing critical financial market infrastructure and operating at the highest levels of central banking and financial stability, Sir Jon and Jochen will be instrumental in helping us build out our global network, and I am honored that they are joining us at this pivotal point in our journey.
“These appointments also reflect a shared conviction that regulated on-chain settlement services in central bank money balances are foundational for the future of finance and a prerequisite for tokenised asset markets to scale for wholesale use.”
Cunliffe adds: “The U.K. has a reputation for driving financial innovation, and the Sterling Fnality Payment System is another example of that. Fnality offers a unique settlement model in the safest asset available, and it is the only firm to have progressed such a model through the authorisation process at the Bank of England.
“As the tokenisation of financial markets gathers pace, settlement in the safest assets available will be crucial to maintaining financial stability. I am delighted to be coming on board as Fnality starts to realise its full potential.”
Metzger comments: “Europe is doing important work on how central bank money can support settlement on a distributed ledger, and Fnality is complementary to that.
“Connecting regional settlement systems across different reserve currencies is the part of the problem that still needs solving, and I am pleased to be joining Fnality as it builds out this solution.”
Sir Jon Cunliffe, a former Deputy Governor for Financial Stability at the Bank of England, will become chair of Fnality’s UK board of directors.
Bringing three decades of experience in financial market infrastructure, payment systems oversight, and global regulatory policy, he also served on the Bank’s Financial Policy Committee and Monetary Policy Committee, chaired the committee on Payments and Market Infrastructures at the Bank for International Settlements (BIS), and sat on the G20 Financial Stability Board Steering Committee.
Jochen Metzger, a former director general for Payments and Settlement Systems at Deutsche Bundesbank, has been appointed to Fnality Europe’s new supervisory board, and is expected to serve as its chair.
He brings more than 30 years of experience in payments, clearing, and settlement infrastructure, having also served on the committee on Payments and Market Infrastructures at the BIS, sat on the Eurosystem’s Market Infrastructure Board, and played a leading role in the development of TARGET2, T2S, and TIPS.
Prof Dr. Ron Berndsen has also been appointed to the Fnality Europe’s supervisory board.
A former head of Oversight and head of Market Infrastructures Policy at De Nederlandsche Bank, he is currently a senior independent non-executive director of LCH Ltd and LCH SA and chairs the risk committees of both entities.
Fnality says that the appointments of these leading figures in payments and market infrastructure supervision reinforces its commitment to scaling a global network of regional payment systems, each dedicated to meeting the highest standards of central bank policy, governance, and applicable regulatory requirements.
Michelle Neal, group CEO of Fnality, says: “Having spent their careers overseeing critical financial market infrastructure and operating at the highest levels of central banking and financial stability, Sir Jon and Jochen will be instrumental in helping us build out our global network, and I am honored that they are joining us at this pivotal point in our journey.
“These appointments also reflect a shared conviction that regulated on-chain settlement services in central bank money balances are foundational for the future of finance and a prerequisite for tokenised asset markets to scale for wholesale use.”
Cunliffe adds: “The U.K. has a reputation for driving financial innovation, and the Sterling Fnality Payment System is another example of that. Fnality offers a unique settlement model in the safest asset available, and it is the only firm to have progressed such a model through the authorisation process at the Bank of England.
“As the tokenisation of financial markets gathers pace, settlement in the safest assets available will be crucial to maintaining financial stability. I am delighted to be coming on board as Fnality starts to realise its full potential.”
Metzger comments: “Europe is doing important work on how central bank money can support settlement on a distributed ledger, and Fnality is complementary to that.
“Connecting regional settlement systems across different reserve currencies is the part of the problem that still needs solving, and I am pleased to be joining Fnality as it builds out this solution.”
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