Standard Chartered(2888) launched its tokenized deposits solution in Hong Kong on Monday, making the city the first market in the banking group's global network to offer the capability to corporate clients.
Leveraging the Hong Kong Monetary Authority’s Ensemble infrastructure, the blockchain-based solution allows corporate treasurers, banks, investment platforms, and digital asset businesses to manage treasury and liquidity operations around the clock.
Built on Standard Chartered’s proprietary blockchain infrastructure, the tool combines regulated bank deposit trust with tokenized asset programmability. It supports digital treasury workflows, including intragroup liquidity management.
Developed with support from the HKMA’s Supervisory Incubator for Distributed Ledger Technology and powered by Ensemblex, the solution facilitates real-time inter-bank transfers and 24/7 settlement using central bank money, including wholesale central bank digital currency.
China AMC, Finloop, and Panther Trade have already executed live tokenized deposit transactions and settled tokenized money market funds using the platform.
Additionally, Standard Chartered is partnering with Fireblocks to embed native banking capabilities into the digital asset ecosystem, while HashKey has joined as an ecosystem partner.
Mary Huen Wai-yi, chief executive for Hong Kong, Greater China and North Asia at Standard Chartered, said the launch underscores Hong Kong’s position as a leading digital asset hub.
Standard Chartered has been a major participant in the HKMA's Ensemble, contributing to its development and some of its earliest real-value transaction use cases, Huen said.
"This has given us first-hand experience of how tokenization can enhance efficiency, transparency and interoperability across financial markets," she added.
"The value of tokenized deposits lies in their ability to help clients move and manage liquidity more efficiently across institutions and markets," said Ole Matthiessen, global head of transaction services and digital assets.
Matthiessen noted that the solution bridges digital money with practical treasury workflows, said Ole Matthiessen, global head of transaction services and digital assets.
