DTCC closes deal to buy Securrency amid TradFi-crypto integrations

The Depository Trust and Clearing Corporation (DTCC) closed its deal on Monday to acquire Securrency as traditional finance-crypto integrations continue to emerge.

The purchase was first announced in October. It is part of a bid to help accelerate the expected greater institutional use of on-chain assets amid an industry-wide tokenization push.

DTCC CEO Frank La Salla said in a Monday statement that the firm seeks to build “a robust digital infrastructure that protects the safety and soundness of financial markets and delivers on the enormous promise and potential of institutional DeFi in the coming years.”

The financial market infrastructure giant offers clearing and settlement services — processing trillions of dollars in securities transactions daily, as stated on its website. Securrency is a blockchain-based financial and regulatory technology developer.

The acquisition — made for $50 million — formalizes DTCC’s current blockchain pilot efforts and is expected to deliver an institutional post-trade platform that supports most digital asset products, according to Elliot Chun, a partner at advisory firm Architect Partners. This includes existing securities wrapped in on-chain assets, he added.

“DTCC has been forward-thinking in its use of blockchain, and the cost and operational efficiencies are well-suited for DTCC to impact the entire securities industry,” Chun noted in an October research note.

The acquiring firm — renamed as DTCC Digital Assets — is set to be led by Nadine Chakar. The executive joined the firm from State Street in January.

A DTCC spokesperson did not immediately comment on the combined firm’s next steps.

Securrency has been in the thick of tokenization efforts seen in recent years as traditional finance giants have looked for ways to get more involved in the blockchain and crypto segments.

Chakar said in January the financial services industry was at “a critical tipping point as it tokenizes regulated real-world assets and automates legacy financial processes using the power of blockchain technology.”

Total value locked (TVL) in protocols that involve real-world assets is at nearly $5.8 billion, according to DefiLlama data.

Securrency helped asset manager WisdomTree launch “blockchain-enabled” funds that keep a secondary record of share ownership on the Stellar or Ethereum blockchains. DTCC said in an October news release it would license Securrency’s technology to firms — similar to how WisdomTree uses Securrency’s software as infrastructure for its consumer app that offers tokenized assets and funds through digital wallets.

JPMorgan has explored various tokenization and blockchain initiatives for several years — recently facilitating a collateral transaction between BlackRock and Barclays via a decentralized application.

Germany-based Deutsche Bank said in September it was set to establish digital asset custody and tokenization services through a partnership with crypto infrastructure firm Taurus.

“Tokenization has not lived up to its promise yet, and the fundamental way to move the industry forward is by having a critically important market participant make a significant investment in technology,” Chun said in his October post. “You can’t get more critical than DTCC.”

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