DTCC tests tokenized assets with major Wall Street firms

The Depository Trust and Clearing Corporation said it would run a one-day demonstration Wednesday using tokenized versions of assets held at The Depository Trust Company, bringing major financial institutions into a test of blockchain-based market infrastructure. The exercise involves more than 25 firms and comes from an organization whose subsidiaries processed $4.7 quadrillion of securities transactions last year, according to DTCC’s 2025 annual report.

DTCC sits at the center of U.S. post-trade finance, where securities are processed, settled and safeguarded after investors buy and sell stocks and bonds. Its role gives the test broader significance for market operators assessing whether tokenized assets can be connected to established clearing and settlement systems rather than built only on separate crypto-native rails.

JPMorgan opened the event by converting the Invesco QQQ Trust into a tokenized asset, according to DTCC. A DTCC spokesperson confirmed that Goldman Sachs, BlackRock, Vanguard and the New York Stock Exchange are also taking part. The Wall Street Journal first reported the industry demonstration.

Tokenization refers to creating a digital representation of an asset on a blockchain network. In capital markets, that can mean a token linked to a publicly traded security, a Treasury instrument, a fund share or another item of value. The test is intended to show how such representations could be used across collateral, repo, equities, margin and asset-transfer processes while relying on existing financial infrastructure.

Nadine Chakar, global head of DTCC Digital Assets, said in a video statement published Wednesday that the demonstration was an early step in showing how established market systems and newer blockchain tools could operate together. She said DTCC aimed to “prove the value of tokenization” and build toward a possible scalable launch in October.

Assets included in the test

DTCC said the demonstration is expected to include tokenized versions of shares of Microsoft, Circle Internet Group, the Invesco QQQ Trust, the State Street SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust and the iShares 0-3 Month Treasury Bond ETF. Treasurys with different maturities are also expected to be tokenized during the event.

The exercise remains a demonstration rather than a broad market rollout. Still, it gives banks, asset managers, exchanges and infrastructure providers a live venue to examine how digital representations of securities might move through existing post-trade functions.

The industry has discussed tokenization for years, but broad adoption has remained limited. During that period, digital-asset firms focused on tokenized securities and funds, including Ondo and Securitize, have advanced partnerships with large financial institutions. CNBC reported that those efforts have increased pressure on legacy infrastructure providers as institutional interest in tokenized products grows.

Brian Steele, DTCC’s president of clearing and securities services, said in a statement that the DTCC Tokenization service creates an opportunity for “increased efficiency, deeper liquidity and new ways to move and use assets.” He said DTCC is connecting traditional finance and decentralized finance on infrastructure that has supported global markets for decades.

Advocates of blockchain-based market systems cite potential advantages including faster settlement, lower costs, clearer records of ownership and performance, programmable asset terms, broader retail access and cross-border reach. Wednesday’s test is designed to examine those claims in the context of the systems that already support large volumes of U.S. securities activity.

This story draws on original reporting from CNBC.