UBS Launches First Tokenized Money Market Fund on Ethereum, Signaling Major Push into Digital Assets

UBS Asset Management announced the launch of its first tokenized investment fund on the Ethereum network. The “UBS USD Money Market Investment Fund Token” (uMINT) marks a strategic expansion of the world’s largest private bank into the digital asset space.

Thomas Kaegi, Co-Head of UBS Asset Management APAC, highlighted the increasing demand that drove this initiative: “We have seen growing investor appetite for tokenized financial assets across asset classes.” The fund will provide institutional-grade cash management solutions underpinned by high-quality money market instruments within a conservative, risk-managed framework.

This launch represents a significant milestone in UBS’s broader tokenization strategy. Through its in-house service, UBS Tokenize, the bank has already demonstrated its commitment to blockchain innovation. In 2023, the bank originated CNH 200 million in fully digital structured notes and completed the world’s first cross-border repurchase transaction with a natively-issued digital bond on a public blockchain.

The move positions UBS alongside other major financial institutions exploring tokenization, including BlackRock and Franklin Templeton.

The launch follows UBS’s successful pilot of a tokenized Variable Capital Company (VCC) fund in October 2023, conducted in collaboration with the Monetary Authority of Singapore’s Project Guardian initiative. This latest development reflects UBS’s strategy to leverage both public and private blockchain networks for enhanced fund issuance and distribution.

With $5.7 trillion in invested assets following its acquisition of Credit Suisse, UBS’s entry into tokenized funds signals a significant endorsement of blockchain technology’s role in the future of asset management. The bank’s tokenization service aims to reduce barriers and provide broader market access to financial products through decentralized finance infrastructure.