DTCC Launches Tokenization Service With 20 Banks and Firms Signed On
DTCC launched its Tokenization Service on October 28, letting eligible institutions create 1:1 blockchain twins of securities held at DTC. Twenty participants, including JPMorgan, Citi and UBS, have signed access agreements, with Canton and a private Besu network supported first.
Securities held at the center of U.S. post-trade infrastructure can now be represented as blockchain tokens. The Depository Trust & Clearing Corporation (DTCC) launched its Tokenization Service (DTS) on October 28, letting eligible institutions create blockchain-based versions of securities held at its subsidiary, the Depository Trust Company (DTC). Twenty DTC participants have signed access agreements, and more are expected to join.
DTS creates 1:1 digital twins of securities in DTC custody. Signatories include JPMorgan, Morgan Stanley, Bank of America, Barclays, Citi, Fidelity Investments, UBS and State Street. BNP Paribas, Citadel Securities and Apex Clearing are also reported among them.
"Today marks the culmination of years of work to bring tokenized securities into a regulated framework supported by trusted market infrastructure,"
Frank La Salla, DTCC president and CEO
How the structure works
The design keeps the existing plumbing in place. Tokens carry the same CUSIP identifiers as the underlying securities, which stay in DTC custody. Holders keep their ownership rights and protections, and DTC maintains the official registry. Transfers are permitted only between registered wallets.
DTC oversees more than $114 trillion in assets. The eligible pool is roughly $30 trillion, a fraction of that total: DTCC is not moving its whole custody operation onto blockchains.
Published accounts differ on scope. One puts the number of securities available at launch at 34; another cites between 25 and 34 liquid instruments, including selected Russell 1000 equities, major ETFs and US Treasuries. Accounts also diverge on transfer hours, with one describing round-the-clock transfers and another limiting them to the window between 2 a.m. and 6 p.m. ET.
Networks and build-out
The service initially connects to the Canton Network and DTCC's private Hyperledger Besu network. Further integrations are planned for 2027, with Stellar and Circle's Arc among the networks named. DTCC developed the service with input from more than 150 firms. Named technology collaborators include Fireblocks, BitGo, Ondo, Broadridge, Tradeweb and Blockdaemon.
The launch builds on a regulatory step taken in December 2025, when the SEC issued DTC a no-action letter covering certain Russell 1000 shares, major index ETFs and US Treasuries. The letter has been described as a three-year authorization. Around July 2026, DTCC and more than 30 firms completed limited-production trades and onchain transactions, including Treasury trades, share transfers and securities lending.
What it means for markets
The potential benefits cited include faster collateral movement, access to more liquidity pools and more efficient capital deployment. Those gains depend on adoption. The larger test is whether institutions used to established settlement systems will use blockchain transfers in enough volume to change daily operations.
Commentary on the launch frames DTS as a controlled extension of existing infrastructure rather than a pivot toward DeFi. Wallets are registered, hours are fixed, participation is limited to DTCC participants, and the registry remains centralized at DTC. That same commentary flags an operational challenge: keeping the registry authoritative across several blockchains grows harder with each network added.
The move lands as other institutions test tokenized securities, including the ECB's plan to invest in tokenized securities via its Pontes platform. DTS places its tokenization layer inside DTC itself, operating under an SEC no-action framework.
