NEW YORK (Realist English). Goldman Sachs and Bank of New York Mellon are launching a new blockchain-powered platform that will allow institutional investors to purchase and hold tokenized money market funds, executives at both firms told CNBC.
Through the initiative, clients of BNY Mellon, the world’s largest custody bank, will be able to invest in money market funds whose ownership records are stored on Goldman’s private blockchain. The effort already includes major asset managers such as BlackRock, Fidelity Investments, Federated Hermes, and the asset management divisions of both Goldman and BNY.
The move comes just days after President Donald Trump signed the GENIUS Act, establishing federal regulation for U.S.-dollar-backed stablecoins and ushering in a new era for blockchain-integrated financial infrastructure. While stablecoins facilitate real-time payments, tokenized money market funds offer yield — making them especially attractive to hedge funds, pension plans, and corporates seeking liquidity with returns.
“We’ve created the ability for our clients to invest in tokenized money market share classes across a number of fund companies,” said Laide Majiyagbe, BNY’s global head of liquidity, financing, and collateral. “Tokenization enables seamless, efficient transactions — without the traditional frictions of legacy systems.”
Money market funds typically invest in short-term instruments such as Treasuries, repurchase agreements, and commercial paper. Though already highly liquid, trading in these funds is still bound by market hours and processing delays. By contrast, tokenization enables 24/7 settlement, real-time transfers, and automation.
Under the new system, BNY Mellon will maintain traditional records alongside tokenized versions, offering a hybrid model to ease institutional adoption.
Beyond speed and accessibility, digitizing money market fund ownership could unlock new functions. According to Goldman and BNY, tokens could eventually be transferred directly between financial institutions — without needing to liquidate into cash — enabling more efficient collateral management in margin and clearing operations.
“The scale of this market presents a massive opportunity to increase efficiency across the financial system,” said Mathew McDermott, Goldman’s global head of digital assets. “By embedding utility into an instrument that traditionally hasn’t had it, we’re transforming how liquidity and collateral move.”
Since the Federal Reserve began raising interest rates in 2022, investors have poured more than $2.5 trillion into money market funds — making the $7.1 trillion sector a prime candidate for innovation.
As Goldman and BNY position tokenized money funds as the next step in digitizing capital markets, the combination of real-time settlement, yield, and programmable ownership could reshape how institutions manage cash, collateral, and liquidity at global scale.
