The Depository Trust & Clearing Corporation (DTCC) has outlined onboarding steps ahead of its planned fourth-quarter tokenisation service, while Bank Negara Malaysia launched SSDS+, its next-generation Scripless Securities Depository System. SSDS+ links tokenised bond and sukuk records to payments in central-bank money through the Real-time Electronic Transfer of Funds and Securities (RENTAS+) system.

In the United States, Microsoft, Alphabet and Goldman Sachs were among 16 issuers objecting to a planned tokenised-stock venue from OKX and Intercontinental Exchange (ICE). First Abu Dhabi Bank (FAB) issued a dirham green bond, tZERO gained derivatives-clearing registration, and banks expanded custody and deposit-token services. The stock objections put issuer consent and shareholder rights at the centre of the US tokenisation debate.

Read more on the week’s key developments

1. DTCC sets out onboarding steps ahead of tokenisation service

The Depository Trust & Clearing Corporation (DTCC) has published onboarding guidance ahead of the voluntary tokenisation service its subsidiary, The Depository Trust Company (DTC), plans to launch in the fourth quarter. Eligible participants will be able to create tokenised representations of selected securities already held at DTC, while retaining the same ownership rights and investor protections. The guidance covers use cases, governance, operating and custody arrangements, testing and interoperability.

In July, more than 30 firms, including BlackRock, Goldman Sachs, CME Group, Nasdaq and State Street Investment Management, took part in limited production trades using DTC-custodied tokenised assets. The trades covered securities lending, US Treasury repo, equity settlement and central counterparty margin across Besu and Canton. They showed DTC-custodied securities being represented as tokens and used across established market workflows; the onboarding guidance sets out what firms need to prepare before participating.

2. BNM launches platform for tokenised bonds and sukuk

Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) has launched SSDS+, an in-house cloud and distributed-ledger platform for issuing, depositing and safekeeping tokenised securities. It builds on Malaysia’s existing wholesale securities depository and is ready to support tokenised government and corporate retail bonds. SSDS+ records securities ownership and transfers; RENTAS+ handles the corresponding payments in central-bank money around the clock.

The launch puts issuance and securities records on central-bank infrastructure. CIMB’s August pilot tested a different model: tokenised deposits settled the tokenised portion of a MYR 1.68 billion ($417 million) sukuk issue on the bank’s blockchain. MYR 1.38 billion ($343 million) was represented in tokenised form and subscribed by 12 of the 46 investors; the rest was issued conventionally. CIMB tested settlement using commercial bank money, while SSDS+ connects tokenised securities records to central-bank-money settlement and is designed to accommodate retail issuance.

3. Luxembourg issues DLT-native sovereign benchmark

Luxembourg issued a EUR 1.7 billion ($1.9 billion), 10-year sovereign benchmark with a 3.70% coupon, which the government described as Europe’s first distributed ledger technology (DLT)-native sovereign bond. It was issued through LuxCSD using Clearstream’s D7 platform. Spuerkeess led the transaction, with Barclays, BGL BNP Paribas, Citi and Crédit Agricole CIB in the syndicate.

D7 has also supported the European Investment Bank’s EUR 77.5 million ($87 million) DLT-native commercial paper. DekaBank and Eurex Clearing mobilised it through Clearstream’s triparty service and the Eurosystem’s collateral management system for financing with the Bundesbank. This follows the European Central Bank’s acceptance of eligible DLT securities issued through central securities depositories as collateral, showing how digital issuance can connect to established financing and collateral processes.

4. FAB extends digital issuance into dirham green funding

First Abu Dhabi Bank (FAB) issued and settled AED 1 billion ($272 million) in three-year digitally native green notes through Euroclear’s Digital Financial Market Infrastructure (D-FMI). Priced at 5.75%, the notes are the first digitally native green bond from the Middle East and North Africa, according to FAB, and will be its second digital bond listed on the Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange.

The issue extends FAB’s digital funding beyond its July 2025, $100 million floating-rate digital bond on HSBC’s Orion platform. This transaction is larger, denominated in dirhams and settled through Euroclear. D-FMI connects digital issuance to Euroclear Bank’s conventional settlement platform for secondary-market trading and liquidity management. The proceeds are designated for environmental or climate-related projects, though FAB has not identified specific projects.

5. tZERO gains US derivatives clearing registration

The Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) registered tZERO DCO, LLC, a derivatives clearing organisation (DCO), on 16 October, permitting it to clear fully collateralised futures, options on futures and swaps. As of 22 October, the CFTC register showed 28 organisations with registered status, including ICE, Cboe and LCH, as well as newer entrants such as Coinbase Clearing and Gemini Olympus.

tZERO already operates an alternative trading system for digital securities alongside brokerage, custody and transfer-agent services. Clearing adds a central counterparty function: standing between counterparties, managing collateral and settlement obligations, and handling a member default under its rules. That could extend tZERO’s regulated market infrastructure beyond securities trading; its separate application to operate a derivatives exchange remains pending.

6. Microsoft, Alphabet and Goldman Sachs object to tokenised stock plan

Microsoft, Alphabet and Goldman Sachs were among 16 issuers that objected to having tokenised versions of their shares traded on the planned OKX-ICE venue. Under the Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) temporary innovation exemption, a venue must notify issuers before listing third-party tokenised shares; a timely objection blocks that stock from trading on that venue. The companies’ stated reasons were not disclosed.

The objections expose a central question in the framework: whether a third party can tokenise a company’s shares without its consent, and how token holders’ claims map to shareholder rights and the issuer’s ownership records. The objections apply to this venue, not every tokenised-stock project. Nasdaq is pursuing a separate route linked to DTC’s pilot, intended to keep tokenised securities within the existing market structure. The Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association has asked the SEC to address issuer consent, investor protection and ownership rights.

7. JP Morgan brings deposit token to Ethereum

JP Morgan’s JPM Coin, a token representing dollar deposits held at the bank, went live on Ethereum for institutional clients on 19 October. JP Morgan launched it on Base in November 2025; Ethereum is its second public blockchain. JPM Coin is available only to approved clients and represents a bank deposit, rather than a freely circulating stablecoin.

JP Morgan said Ethereum’s established liquidity and tokenised assets made it a natural next network; JPM Coin supports peer-to-peer transfers between institutional clients across the Ethereum Virtual Machine ecosystem, including Base and Ethereum. JP Morgan says Kinexys processes more than $7 billion in average daily transaction volume across its services; this is not JPM Coin volume. Citi Token Services and HSBC’s Tokenised Deposit Service are among the bank-led alternatives, though their models and network access differ.

8. Anchorage connects Securitize to bank-issued stablecoins

Securitize can now mint and redeem stablecoins issued by Anchorage Digital Bank directly, without sourcing them through intermediaries. Anchorage Digital Bank is a federally chartered digital-asset bank; Securitize has more than $4 billion in assets on its platform and provides infrastructure for tokenised funds from firms including BlackRock, Apollo, BNY, Hamilton Lane, KKR and VanEck.

For institutions transacting on Securitize, the arrangement connects the dollar side of tokenised trades to the bank issuing, settling and providing custody for the stablecoins. Anchorage Digital Bank’s stablecoin range includes USDtb, issued in partnership with Ethena Labs, and USA₮, developed with Tether. As of 31 August, about 99% of USDtb’s $530 million in reserves was held in BlackRock’s BUIDL fund, which Securitize tokenises. Circle Mint also offers institutions direct minting and redemption of USDC and EURC, giving tokenised-asset investors another route to digital cash.

9. Standard Chartered signs deal to acquire Zodia Custody

Standard Chartered has signed definitive agreements to acquire 100% of Zodia Custody, subject to regulatory approvals and customary closing conditions. Zodia’s regulated custody business operates through entities in Singapore, Hong Kong, Australia, the United Arab Emirates and Luxembourg. Standard Chartered plans to integrate that business into its Securities Services activities.

Standard Chartered and Northern Trust founded Zodia Custody in 2020; SBI Holdings, NAB and Emirates NBD also became investors. Zodia’s software and professional-services business will move to Zodia Solutions, a separate entity under SC Ventures. The deal brings the custody operation closer to the bank while keeping its technology business separate; the acquisition has not yet closed.

10. Deutsche Bank plans institutional digital-asset custody in Europe

In a 16 October interview with Reuters, Deutsche Bank’s co-head of corporate banking said the bank was weeks from launching its digital-asset custody service in Germany, with expansion to Asian financial centres planned for 2027. A 16 September bank release said the service would initially support Bitcoin, Ether and selected stablecoins or e-money tokens, including USDC, EURC and EURAU; Deutsche Bank will manage clients’ wallets and private keys, subject to regulatory processes. Tokenised financial instruments are also on the roadmap. Commerzbank already offers German corporate clients Bitcoin and Ether custody, with trading handled by Crypto Finance, giving Deutsche Bank an operating local competitor.

Deutsche Bank’s other public work spans fund servicing in Asia and issuance infrastructure in Europe. Under the Monetary Authority of Singapore’s Project Guardian, it has explored an interoperable platform for tokenised funds with Memento Blockchain and Interop Labs. In Europe, it acted as issuing and paying agent for Clearstream’s EUR 50 million ($56 million) dematerialised Euro-commercial paper: an electronic record replaced the physical Global Note, but the issuance was not DLT-native.