Swiss Regulator Grants SIX Group Permission to Combine Digital Asset and Traditional Securities Custody
Swiss financial market regulator FINMA has authorized SIX Group to incorporate digital asset custody services into its existing regulated infrastructure that handles traditional securities settlement and post-trade operations.
According to SIX Group, the Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority FINMA has granted authorization to incorporate digital asset custody capabilities into the company's central securities depository infrastructure, enabling financial institutions to utilize digital asset custody services via the same regulated post-trade framework currently employed for conventional securities.
The regulatory authorization additionally permits SIX to incorporate its digital central securities depository platform, known as SIX Digital Exchange, into SIX SIS AG, bringing together both digital and conventional asset services within one unified legal entity.
According to SIX, the organizational framework aims to provide institutional clients with a unified infrastructure platform for settlement and custody operations spanning both conventional and digital asset classes.
As an operator of stock exchanges in both Switzerland and Spain, SIX Group delivers financial market infrastructure solutions encompassing securities settlement, custody services and payment processing systems designed for institutional market participants.
This development comes after an April collaboration between SIX Group and Chainlink aimed at making equity market data connected to over 2 trillion euros in Swiss and Spanish-listed equities accessible onchain throughout more than 75 blockchain networks.
Exchanges and clearing firms expand tokenization efforts
Conventional exchange operators and post-trade infrastructure service providers are progressively broadening their focus into tokenized equity products and blockchain-powered settlement systems as financial markets transition toward onchain representations of conventional securities.
During March, Nasdaq announced it was linking its European trading platforms to Börse Stuttgart Group's Seturion tokenized settlement infrastructure to enable blockchain-powered settlement for tokenized securities throughout European capital markets.
Nasdaq has similarly broadened tokenization initiatives within the US market. During the same month, the exchange announced it was collaborating with Kraken parent company Payward and Backed to build infrastructure supporting tokenized equities and blockchain-powered market access.
This Monday, Depository Trust & Clearing Corporation (DTCC), which provides US securities clearing and settlement infrastructure services, announced its intention to pilot tokenized securities trading alongside more than 50 traditional finance and crypto companies in preparation for a wider launch anticipated later this year.
During the earlier part of this year, the New York Stock Exchange together with parent company Intercontinental Exchange announced they were building infrastructure designed for tokenized stocks and exchange-traded funds featuring blockchain-powered settlement and capability for 24/7 trading.
Market data from RWA.xyz indicates the market value of tokenized equities has increased approximately 33% during the past 30 days to roughly $1.29 billion.
