HSBC and Ant Group Successfully Test Tokenized Deposits for Real-Time Treasury Fund Movement
Global banking giant HSBC, in collaboration with Ant Group, the financial services provider founded by Jack Ma, has successfully tested the use of tokenized deposits in a pioneering initiative conducted within the Hong Kong Monetary Authority’s Fintech Supervisory Sandbox. This groundbreaking effort aimed to explore the potential of deposit tokenization in facilitating real-time treasury fund movement within corporate accounts under the HSBC network.
The test involved the complete cycle of tokenized deposits, from issuance to transfer and redemption, with HSBC connected to Ant Group’s blockchain platform. It enabled treasury fund transfer across the globe, supporting major currencies like HKD, CNY, USD, GBP, and EUR.
Vincent Lau, the Global Head of Emerging Payments for Global Payment Solutions at HSBC, expressed enthusiasm about this innovative approach, saying, “We are excited to apply the concept of tokenized deposit to unlock next-generation treasury solutions together with Ant Group. The test exemplifies cutting-edge banking capabilities available in Hong Kong as a corporate treasury hub. We will continue to leverage tokenized deposit and other financial innovations to streamline and optimize treasury management for our clients.”
This marks HSBC’s latest experiment with tokenized deposits. The bank has been at the forefront of several successful central bank digital currency (CBDC) trials, including Swift’s interoperability trials and the mBridge cross-border CBDC platform. Moreover, it has collaborated with other banks to explore the potential of an interoperable digital money platform through the Regulated Liability Network in the US and UK.
The successful tokenized deposit test underpins the growing relevance of blockchain technology and tokenization in enhancing treasury management and facilitating always-on, real-time fund transfers within corporate networks, reinforcing the role of Hong Kong as a corporate treasury hub. The outcomes of this initiative pave the way for further research into the efficiencies and innovations that blockchain and tokenization can bring to corporate treasury management.
