BlackRock is exploring how to bring exchange-traded funds (ETFs) onto public blockchains, people familiar with the matter told Bloomberg. The sources said the asset manager is weighing tokenizing funds tied to real-world assets such as stocks, though any rollout would depend on regulatory approval.
The discussions follow BlackRock’s first experiment with tokenization last year. The firm introduced the BlackRock USD Institutional Digital Liquidity Fund, also known as BUIDL. The fund, which is backed by short-term U.S. Treasuries, repurchase agreements and cash, has quickly grown into the world’s largest tokenized Treasury product, managing nearly $2.2 billion.
Tokenizing ETFs would represent a deeper step into blockchain-based financial products. In practice, it would mean that shares of