BNP Paribas Asset Management has successfully issued a tokenized share class of a French-domiciled money market fund (MMF) on the public Ethereum blockchain.
The pilot marks a shift from the bank’s previous tokenization experiments, which were conducted on private blockchain infrastructure in Luxembourg. By moving to Ethereum, the group is testing how public blockchain networks can support regulated financial products.
How the Pilot Was Structured
The tokenized shares were issued through the bank’s proprietary AssetFoundry™ platform, which manages tokenization, network connectivity, and wallet functionality.
Although the shares were deployed on the public Ethereum network, the pilot uses a permissioned access model. Only authorized and eligible participants can hold or transfer the tokens, ensuring regulatory compliance while leveraging public blockchain infrastructure.
The initiative involved several divisions within BNP Paribas:
- BNP Paribas Asset Management acted as the fund issuer.
- Securities Services served as transfer agent and handled private key custody.
- CIB AssetFoundry provided the technical blockchain connectivity.
The bank described the effort as an internal, one-off experiment designed to test operational capabilities.
Why Tokenize a Money Market Fund?
Money market funds play a key role in institutional liquidity management. Tokenizing such instruments allows for potential operational improvements.
Traditionally, fund subscriptions and redemptions are processed in batches. On-chain tokenization enables transactions to occur on demand, based on real-time Net Asset Value (NAV), rather than waiting for scheduled processing cycles.
Blockchain infrastructure can also enhance transparency by recording ownership changes and compliance checks immutably on-chain.
Part of a Broader Institutional Shift
BNP Paribas’ move aligns with a broader trend among major financial institutions such as UBS and JPMorgan, which are exploring real-time settlement and tokenized fund structures.
While the current pilot remains limited and intra-group, the bank is evaluating how public blockchain infrastructure could eventually support broader regulated fund issuance.
The experiment reflects a growing shift in traditional finance: moving from closed, private ledgers toward controlled access models built on public blockchain networks.
