Summary
BNY Mellon is preparing to launch tokenized U.S. Treasuries on a proprietary private blockchain, with pilot trading before end-2026 and 24/7 settlement for both conventional and tokenized Treasuries targeted for 2027. The move modernizes the $26T+ U.S. Treasury market via a permissioned-ledger approach chosen for institutional-grade security and compliance.
Key Points
- Tokenized U.S. Treasuries on BNY Mellon's proprietary (private) blockchain; pilot trading targeted before end-2026.
- 24/7 settlement for both conventional and tokenized Treasuries targeted for 2027.
- U.S. Treasury market: $26T+ outstanding debt — among the deepest, most liquid markets globally.
- Private/permissioned ledger chosen (vs. public blockchains) for security/compliance and institutional-grade controls.
- Use cases: tokenized collateral for margin requirements, intraday liquidity management, automated/programmable transactions.
- Current Treasury settlement: T+1, business-hours-limited trading.
- 24/7 benefits: reduced counterparty risk, improved capital efficiency, dynamic portfolio management across time zones.
- Competitive context: JPMorgan's Onyx platform, Goldman Sachs also experimenting with tokenized assets/blockchain settlement; BNY's explicit 24/7 Treasury timeline sets it apart.
- Custodian-and-settlement-agent positioning leverages BNY's existing role in the ecosystem.
- Success could influence how central banks/regulators approach digitization of government securities.