News linked to both this project and an event.
According to CoinDesk, the UK government plans to complete the first tokenized sovereign bond issuance tests through HSBC and the London Stock Exchange Group (LSEG) in early 2027, but industry experts point out that on-chain cash settlement issues remain the core obstacle hindering the implementation of the plan. Varun Paul, Global Head of Central Banks and Market Infrastructure at Fireblocks, stated that the project has secured sufficient institutional support, and a change in government (UK Prime Minister changing from Keir Starmer to Andy Burnham) is unlikely to reverse it, and tokenized government bonds are expected to boost market demand given the UK's current debt scale of nearly 3 trillion pounds (approximately 4 trillion USD). Jannah Patchay, Founder of Markets Evolution, pointed out that tokenized bond technology has been validated for nearly seven years since Santander Bank issued the first tokenized sterling corporate bond in 2019, but the absence of on-chain counterparty risk-free settlement assets has remained unresolved. She called on regulators to promote the use of compliant sterling stablecoins to provide an on-chain settlement mechanism. Currently, the global stablecoin market size reaches $300 billion, but TGBP, the largest pound stablecoin by market capitalization, is only worth about $34.2 million, accounting for a negligible proportion.
: The South Korean government today released a "Roadmap for the Internationalization of the Korean Won," aiming to transform the won from a regulated currency into a freely convertible currency and to establish an offshore won settlement network. The Bank of Korea will launch a system tentatively named the "Offshore Won Settlement Network," which is expected to begin trial operations in September this year and officially launch in January next year. South Korea will also build digital asset payment infrastructure to lay the foundation for the issuance, distribution, and trading of won-pegged stablecoins, and plans to launch a pilot project next year to promote the tokenization of government bonds linked to the central bank digital currency (CBDC) of the Bank of Korea. Additionally, South Korea will officially join Project Agora, a cross-border digital payment initiative led by the Bank for International Settlements (BIS) that brings together the central banks of eight countries.
The Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) announced today the establishment of a Tokenized Bond Expert Group, bringing together industry representatives with relevant experience and a shared interest in the development of Hong Kong’s tokenized bond market, to further advance the application and expansion potential of tokenized bonds in Hong Kong. Members of the Expert Group include representatives from industry associations, financial institutions, law firms, and financial infrastructure and technology providers. Building on the progress achieved to date in the HKMA’s various initiatives related to tokenized bonds, the Expert Group will jointly explore policy measures, market practices, and innovative solutions.