Singapore-based lender DBS announced Thursday it will tokenize structured notes on the Ethereum public blockchain and offer it to eligible investors on third-party digital investment platforms and digital exchanges.

ADDX, DigiFT and HydraX are the first three digital platforms that DBS has entered into arrangements with to distribute tokenized structured notes, DBS said in a statement.

By leveraging DBS’ track record in tokenization and partnerships with third-party digital platforms, the bank said it is providing more accredited and institutional investors with greater flexibility in using sophisticated financial instruments to manage their portfolios.

According to the statement, this comes at a time when Singapore’s attractiveness as a wealth management hub has led to a growth in professional investors and family offices here.

The number of single family offices in Singapore exceeded 2,000 in 2024, up 43 percent from the year before.

It is noted that structured notes are complex instruments which typically require a minimum investment of $100,000.

These instruments are often tailored to the unique requirements of each investor, making them non-fungible.

Tokenization creates individual tokens each representing a $1,000 share of the original note.

These ‘bite-sized’ tokens are also identical to each other, making them more fungible and easier to trade.

These characteristics enable investors to subscribe to and trade structured note tokens with greater flexibility and precision, helping them manage portfolios with greater agility and resilience amidst market volatility.

In addition, DBS’ partnership with third-party digital platforms broadens access to tokenized structured notes for accredited and institutional investors who are not DBS clients.

For the first token distribution, DBS will tokenize cash-settled cryptocurrency-linked participation notes for distribution across third-party digital platforms.

The note structure provides investors with a cash payout when cryptocurrency prices rise, enabling them to build exposure to the asset class without having to manage any cryptocurrency.

The note is also structured to mitigate potential losses should cryptocurrency prices decline.

According to the statement, tokenization and distribution enable more accredited and institutional investors to access DBS’ cryptocurrency-linked structured notes, which was launched in September 2024 for eligible DBS clients, alongside cryptocurrency options trading.

Demand for such instruments has been strong as investors seek to incorporate advanced investment strategies in their digital asset portfolios.

In the first half of 2025, DBS clients executed over $1 billion of trades involving these instruments, with trade volumes growing almost 60 percent from the first quarter of 2025 to the second quarter of 2025.

Beyond cryptocurrency-linked notes, DBS will also tokenize common structured notes such as equity-linked notes and credit-linked notes.

“Asset tokenization is the next frontier of financial markets infrastructure,” said Li Zhen, Head of Foreign Exchange and Digital Assets, Global Financial Markets, DBS.

“Since 2021, DBS has been active in scaling this ecosystem by fostering responsible innovation, enabling tokenization to meet real market demand and make financial markets more efficient and accessible,

“By leveraging DBS’ strong credit ratings, partnerships and capabilities, more investors can now tap our solutions to better manage their portfolios,” he said.

He noted that the firm’s first tokenized product, a crypto-linked note, also addresses the growing institutional appetite for digital assets.

“With this initiative, a broader segment of investors can now tap our digital asset ecosystem to build exposure to the asset class,” he added.



#Tokenization #DigitalAssets #WealthManagement #BlockchainFinance #DBSBank