The U.S. Depository Trust & Clearing Corporation (DTCC) is partnering with the Stellar blockchain to tokenize custodial assets. This move signifies an expansion of Wall Street’s efforts to transition traditional financial assets onto blockchain technology.
According to CoinDesk on Wednesday, DTCC aims to tokenize custodial assets for use on the Stellar blockchain by the first half of next year. They are also exploring options to tokenize highly liquid assets, including major stock indices and U.S. Treasury securities.
Tokenization is a process that digitally issues and circulates traditional assets such as stocks, bonds, and funds on the blockchain. This technology offers benefits like near-instantaneous settlement and round-the-clock trading capabilities.
DTCC, which oversees more than 114 trillion USD in assets, is regarded as a cornerstone institution in the U.S. financial market infrastructure. Recently, it has emerged as one of the leading traditional financial firms spearheading the expansion of the tokenization market.
Previously, DTCC announced plans to launch a pilot program for tokenized securities trading services in July, with a full rollout scheduled for October. In December last year, the company also secured a regulatory exemption from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to operate its custodial asset tokenization service.
This collaboration with Stellar is part of a broader multi-chain strategy. Rather than confining assets to a single blockchain, this approach enables asset mobility across various networks.
Frank La Salla, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of DTCC, commented that this represents another step forward in building a digital infrastructure that bridges traditional financial markets with digital markets.
Nadine Chakar, head of DTCC’s Digital Assets division, added that it intends to establish connections with various Layer 1 and Layer 2 networks in the future.