Big Banks Are Rebuilding Financial Markets With Tokenization

What was once treated as an experimental blockchain use case is now becoming a core part of institutional strategy across capital markets.

Key Takeaways

• Asset tokenization is moving into production as major banks rebuild core financial infrastructure.
• Institutions are already tokenizing deposits, securities, and private assets to enable faster settlement and programmable ownership.
• Despite early liquidity, the shift toward tokenized markets is increasingly seen as irreversible.

Banks are no longer testing tokenization in isolation. Instead, they are redesigning core systems to support on-chain issuance, settlement, and asset servicing. This shift reflects growing confidence that blockchain-based rails can outperform legacy infrastructure in speed, transparency, and operational efficiency, especially for complex and cross-border transactions.

Global banks expand tokenized assets

Institutions such as JPMorgan, UBS, Citigroup, Goldman Sachs, and BNY Mellon have already launched or scaled tokenization initiatives. These efforts span tokenized deposits, bonds and funds, commercial paper, and private-market assets, bringing traditionally illiquid instruments into more flexible digital formats.

Why tokenization is gaining traction

The appeal lies in real-time settlement, programmable ownership rules, and the ability to fractionalize assets. Together, these features reduce settlement risk, improve capital efficiency, and open access to markets that were previously limited to large institutions or long lock-up periods.

Platforms becoming financial infrastructure

A growing ecosystem of enterprise platforms is underpinning this transition. Citi’s token services platform targets continuous settlement and liquidity management, while Chainlink provides interoperability that allows tokenized assets to move securely across different blockchains and systems. The Canton Network is attracting institutional interest for its privacy-focused design, enabling regulated entities to transact on shared ledgers without exposing sensitive data.

Technology firms deepen their role

Large technology providers are embedding tokenization tools directly into institutional workflows. IBM is expanding digital asset management solutions to support the full lifecycle of tokenized securities across multiple blockchains. JPMorgan’s Kinexys platform and Oracle-backed solutions are integrating tokenization into payments, data, and financial messaging systems already used by banks. In Europe, Societe Generale’s digital asset arm has pushed ahead with tokenized bonds and stablecoin infrastructure.

Early adoption, long-term impact

While liquidity remains limited and many deployments are still permissioned, the direction is increasingly clear. Banks are committing capital, talent, and regulatory resources to tokenization, signaling that this is a structural shift rather than a passing trend.

As adoption broadens and market depth improves, tokenization is poised to reshape how global finance operates. The institutions building these systems today are positioning themselves at the center of tomorrow’s financial architecture, where assets move faster, ownership is programmable, and markets operate continuously.

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