DTCC launches tokenization service with 20 institutions on day one

The design choice is the real story: by tokenizing entitlements to already-custodied securities rather than issuing new instruments, DTCC keeps CUSIPs and existing ownership rights intact — a deliberate attempt to add blockchain rails without disrupting the settlement and custody plumbing that the largest banks depend on. That the first cohort is dominated by global systemically important institutions suggests tokenization is being absorbed into mainstream market infrastructure rather than routed around it. The open question is whether the December 2025 SEC no-action framework remains sufficient as conversions scale beyond the initial roughly 30 securities, and whether the dual-network approach — Canton alongside DTCC's private Besu chain — becomes a lasting architecture or a transitional compromise.