The world's largest financial market infrastructure operators—the Depository Trust and Clearing Corporation (DTCC), Euroclear, and Clearstream—have issued a joint warning that tokenized securities will struggle to achieve scale without industry-wide agreement on interoperability between blockchains and traditional finance systems. In a comprehensive white paper developed with advisory support from the Boston Consulting Group, the group argues that "interoperability is a prerequisite for digital asset security (DAS) adoption at scale."
Without standardized connections, the paper warns, tokenized assets risk being trapped on isolated networks, leading to high operational costs and fragmented liquidity as trading volumes grow. The authors explicitly rejected the notion that a single dominant ledger will emerge, instead describing a future operating model as a "network-of-networks" where standards, gateways, and regulated service providers link digital and traditional systems.
The framework extends beyond technical bridges, emphasizing that interoperability must cover five critical domains: assets and liabilities, ownership recognition, asset lifecycle events, ledger finality, and legal enforceability. The authors summarized their goal with the phrase: "same asset, same rights, same outcome."
The timing of this warning is significant as tokenization gains momentum, with over $300 billion in daily repo activity already occurring across major platforms and pilot programs expanding across U.S. and European markets. However, the paper notes that many workflows still depend on legacy rails, with tokenized bonds trading on-chain while cash settles through traditional real-time gross settlement systems or bank payment networks—a coexistence expected to last for years.
Nadine Chakar, Head of Digital Assets at DTCC, emphasized the strategic imperative: "Interoperability serves as the core foundation for adoption. We must connect TradFi and DeFi through common goals for data, standards, and risk management."
The 43-page document represents a major convergence of traditional finance expertise on blockchain's future, moving beyond theoretical discussion to provide a concrete framework. The group called on regulators and market participants to develop working groups focused on governance, standards, and resilience, stating that "collective action today will shape resilient markets tomorrow."
This push comes as major Wall Street firms argue tokenization could reshape financial markets by enabling 24/7 trading, faster settlement, and more efficient collateral use. While not disputing this vision, the paper suggests achieving it depends less on launching new chains and more on aligning the rules that govern them.
