FRANKFURT, July 17, 2008 (AFP) - The European Central Bank launched a European securities settlement platform Thursday dubbed Target2-Securities that is expected to hasten the integration of European financial markets.

The so-called T2S project 'will provide a single, borderless pool of pan-European securities, as well as a core, neutral state-of-the-art settlement process,' an ECB statement said.

It is being developed by the central banks of France, Germany, Italy and Spain.

'Almost all euro area CSDs (central securities depositories), representing a very large share of settlement activity in the euro area ... are prepared to enter into a legally binding contractual arrangement by the end of the first quarter of 2009' and commit to using the system, the statement said.

In short, central banks that pay dearly for settlements and deliveries by private national operators have agreed to go through T2S once it is fully up and running.

Market actors will be able to trade securities via the program which 'already embodies agreed harmonisation measures in several key areas.'

Central depositories outside the eurozone have been invited to give their opinion of the platform, with Denmark already agreeing to participate for transactions in both euros and Danish krones.

Swedish and Swiss despositories said they would use it for euro-denominated deals, but that a decision concerning their national currencies had not yet been taken.