LuxSE Launches Safe Asset Gateway Covering €3.6tn in Bond

On Friday 2 October 2026, the Luxembourg Stock Exchange (LuxSE) announced the launch of the European Safe Asset Gateway (ESAG), a new initiative designed to provide retail investors with access to euro-denominated benchmark bonds issued by highly-rated public sector issuers in the European Union.

According to LuxSE, ESAG provides centralised access to a large list of benchmark bonds issued by triple-A rated Sovereign, Supranational and Agency (SSA) issuers in the EU. It combines comprehensive asset class coverage, issuer documentation and price transparency, and facilitates retail-sized trading in the secondary market supported by liquidity provision mechanisms.

LuxSE marked the launch of the European Safe Asset Gateway at a dedicated event at the Exchange on Thursday 1 October 2026, in the presence of European Commissioner for Budget, Anti-Fraud and Public Administration Piotr Serafin and Luxembourg's Minister of Finance Gilles Roth.

At launch, ESAG covers more than 370 debt instruments issued by ten public issuers carrying a top-tier rating from at least one of the leading rating agencies. These include four supranational issuers - the European Union (EU), the European Investment Bank (EIB), the European Stability Mechanism (ESM) and the European Financial Stability Facility (EFSF) - as well as five sovereign issuers: Denmark, Germany, Luxembourg, the Netherlands and Sweden. The German agency issuer Kreditanstalt für Wiederaufbau (KfW) is also included.

To be eligible for inclusion in ESAG, bonds must be euro-denominated, issued by one of the qualified triple-A rated SSA issuers in the EU, have a minimum issued amount of €1 billion and a maturity of at least twelve months. The universe of bonds featured in ESAG at launch represents a total outstanding value of approximately €3.6 trillion. LuxSE plans to expand its coverage at subsequent stages by including benchmark bonds issued by other triple-A rated public institutions in the EU that meet the criteria defined for the gateway.

ESAG builds on LuxSE's existing listing and trading infrastructure and provides a single entry point to public debt assets covered by the gateway. It offers investors centralised access to issuer documentation and a clear presentation of valuation or indicative prices and yield data. ESAG also includes a number of sustainable bonds for which relevant frameworks, sustainability information and impact metrics are available.

All bonds featured in ESAG are available for trading via LuxSE's eligible trading members on LuxXPrime, LuxSE's dedicated platform for retail-sized trading in fixed-income securities. Launched in 2019, LuxXPrime now covers 3,000 bonds from more than 500 issuers, with trading activity supported by liquidity provision mechanisms that allow investors to exit their investments.

In addition to trading members already operating on LuxXPrime, Luxembourg banks Spuerkeess and Raiffeisen have expressed support for the initiative and committed to putting in place solutions to facilitate access to ESAG for their retail clients.

According to LuxSE, the initiative contributes to the objectives of the EU's Savings and Investments Union (SIU) and aims to help foster an investment culture in Europe. The SIU aims to empower EU citizens to grow their wealth by investing in European capital markets, with the stated objective of redirecting some of the estimated €10 trillion in household savings into market investments to boost economic growth and innovation in Europe.

LuxSE stated that by making European Safe Assets easier to identify, compare and access, ESAG supports the broader objective of encouraging greater participation in capital markets and providing European retail investors with more opportunities to invest in high-quality instruments and diversify their portfolios. The Exchange added that ESAG brings together a large, diversified pool of liquid euro-denominated bonds and thereby also supports the EU's strategic ambition to strengthen the euro as a global reserve and investment currency.

Julie Becker, Chief Executive Officer of LuxSE, explained: “We developed the European Safe Asset Gateway to make it easier, particularly for retail investors, to find and access bonds issued by the top-rated public issuers in the EU. Our ambition is to give European retail investors more opportunities to mobilise their savings and to invest in high-quality financial instruments.”

She added: “As an exchange, we have an important role to play in connecting European savings with capital markets. This role begins with clear information, transparent pricing and practical access to investment opportunities.”

Luxembourg's Minister of Finance Gilles Roth stated: “The European Safe Asset Gateway marks an important step in transforming the Savings and Investments Union into concrete results. By making European capital markets more accessible and connected, it will help unlock investment, support growth, and deliver benefits for citizens.”

He added: “The stronger our markets are, the better Europe will be placed to finance its own priorities. Luxembourg is proud to remain at the centre of this effort.”