Key Takeaways
DTCC launched a tokenization service connected to a custody operation holding more than $114 trillion in assets.JPMorgan, Morgan Stanley and 18 other DTC participants signed agreements to access the service.DTCC initially supports Canton and private Besu networks, with additional blockchain integrations planned for 2027.
Wall Street’s $114 Trillion Custody Giant Enters Tokenization
On Wednesday, DTCC told Bitcoin.com News that the launch of its Tokenization Service (DTS) would allow eligible institutions to create blockchain-based representations of securities held by its subsidiary, the Depository Trust Company (DTC). The service lets participating firms convert conventional securities entitlements into digital tokens, transfer them to designated wallets, and subsequently convert them back into traditional form.
These digital twins retain the ownership rights, investor protections, and economic entitlements attached to their conventional counterparts. The underlying securities remain within DTC’s established custody infrastructure. The distinction is substantial. The post-trade market infrastructure firm DTCC isn’t moving its entire $114 trillion custody operation onto blockchains. Instead, it’s introducing a regulated mechanism for tokenizing eligible securities within that enormous pool.
“Today marks the culmination of years of work to bring tokenized securities into a regulated framework supported by trusted market infrastructure,” explained Frank La Salla, DTCC’s president and CEO.
Twenty Financial Institutions Sign On as Blockchain Networks Connect
Twenty DTC participants have signed agreements to access the service, including Wall Street giants like JPMorgan, Morgan Stanley, Bank of America, Barclays, Citi, Fidelity Investments, UBS and State Street. The roster also includes BNP Paribas, Citadel Securities, Apex Clearing and several other financial institutions, with additional participants expected to join progressively.
DTS initially connects to the Canton Network and DTCC’s private Besu blockchain, with further network integrations scheduled for 2027. The architecture allows eligible institutions to move between conventional securities infrastructure and blockchain environments without surrendering the protections associated with their existing holdings.
DTCC developed the platform with input from more than 150 firms through its Digital Assets Solutions Industry Working Group. Technology collaborators include firms such as Fireblocks, Bitgo, Ondo, Broadridge and Tradeweb. For participating institutions, the potential payoff lies in faster collateral movement, access to additional liquidity pools and more efficient capital deployment.
SEC Clearance Paved the Way for Tokenized Securities
The launch follows a December 2025 no-action letter from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) permitting DTC to tokenize specified securities, including Russell 1000 constituents, exchange-traded funds tracking major indexes and U.S. Treasury securities. Roughly seven months later, DTCC and more than 30 firms completed initial limited-production trades and multiple onchain transactions.
The project has now moved beyond those preliminary exercises into a live institutional service. DTCC says tokenized assets can be mobilized within minutes, potentially changing how firms manage securities collateral across markets. Yet the larger test is still ahead: whether institutions accustomed to established settlement systems will embrace blockchain-based securities transfers in sufficient volume to change everyday market operations.
