Tokenized money and securities are moving from pilots to production infrastructure, according to two separate reports released on October 28. DBS published its 2026 global survey of 422 CFOs, finance heads and senior treasury executives at organizations generating more than $500 million annually across 11 markets. It found 88% are piloting, using or fully deploying tokenized money, while only 12% remain in exploration or non-use. Within that group, 24% had use cases fully deployed and operational at scale, 43% reported limited live use in selected geographies, and 21% remained at pilot or proof-of-concept stage. Stablecoins lead current or planned adoption at 63%, followed by tokenized deposits at 53%, tokenized money market funds at 52%, and central bank digital currencies at 51%. Cryptocurrencies rank lower at 35%.
DBS said strategic agility during periods of increased market volatility was the strongest adoption driver at 55%, followed by managing operational complexity at 53% and optimizing liquidity management at 51%. Regulatory uncertainty, security concerns, internal expertise, integration complexity and unclear ROI were cited as remaining barriers. For traceability and auditability, 24% of respondents said they were already experiencing benefits and 48% expected them within one to two years.
On the same day, DTCC commercially launched its Tokenization Service. The first wave covers 34 instruments — Russell 1000 stocks, exchange-traded funds and U.S. Treasury securities — with a combined market value of roughly $30 trillion. Twenty financial institutions, including JPMorgan, Citigroup and Morgan Stanley, have signed access agreements. The tokens move across the Canton Network and a private blockchain built with Hyperledger Besu. DTCC said the eligible securities have a market value of about $30 trillion, but the value actually converted into tokens has not been disclosed. The service plugs into DTC custody of more than $114 trillion in securities, after DTCC subsidiaries processed transactions worth $4.7 quadrillion in 2025.
The process allows a DTC participant to request conversion of part of its position into tokens, with target processing times of 15 minutes or less. Each token corresponds one-to-one with securities that remain in custody and carries the same CUSIP. The official ownership record stays in DTCC's internal LedgerScan system, while the blockchain tracks wallet movements. Smart contracts allow tokens to be minted, burned, paused and forcibly clawed back when rules are breached. The legal basis is a no-action letter from the SEC issued on December 11, 2025, with a three-year pilot. DTCC tested live production trades on July 15, 2026, covering securities lending, collateral pledges and repo transactions using U.S. Treasuries. Brian Steele, president of Clearing & Securities Services at DTCC, described the result as proof that tokenization can move collateral in real time and reduce counterparty risk.
In 2027, DTCC plans to add connectivity to Stellar and to Arc, the blockchain developed by USDC issuer Circle. Arc is seen as important because it was built for digital cash payments, and the absence of a digital cash leg currently prevents simultaneous payment and securities settlement. The first hard adoption data will come from regulatory filings required under the SEC letter, including quarterly reports on participants, tokenized securities value and average daily transfer volumes.
