21X

𝗧𝗼𝗸𝗲𝗻𝗶𝘇𝗲𝗱 𝗺𝗮𝗿𝗸𝗲𝘁𝘀 𝘄𝗶𝗹𝗹 𝗻𝗼𝘁 𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗰𝗵 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗶𝗿 𝗳𝘂𝗹𝗹 𝗽𝗼𝘁𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗮𝗹 𝗯𝘆 𝘀𝗶𝗺𝗽𝗹𝘆 𝗽𝘂𝘁𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗹𝗲𝗴𝗮𝗰𝘆 𝗺𝗮𝗿𝗸𝗲𝘁 𝘀𝘁𝗿𝘂𝗰𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗲𝘀 𝗼𝗻 𝗮 𝗯𝗹𝗼𝗰𝗸𝗰𝗵𝗮𝗶𝗻. 𝗧𝗵𝗲𝘆 𝗿𝗲𝗾𝘂𝗶𝗿𝗲 𝗮 𝗻𝗲𝘄 𝗺𝗮𝗿𝗸𝗲𝘁 𝗮𝗿𝗰𝗵𝗶𝘁𝗲𝗰𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗲.  In the second part of our conversation with Dr. Matthias Hirtschulz of d-fine, Marc Hegen, CTO of 21X, explains one of the most important design decisions behind the 21X infrastructure: trading and settlement are integrated within one regulated DLT trading and settlement system. Why does that matter? In traditional capital markets, execution and settlement take place across separate systems, institutions, and processes. That creates dependencies, reconciliation work, counterparty exposure, and the possibility of settlement failure. An on-chain infrastructure can fundamentally change this model. At 21X, matching and settlement are designed to happen atomically. Once an order is matched, the asset and the payment are exchanged within the same blockchain transaction. Both sides of the transaction are completed or neither is. The second major design choice is openness. Rather than building a closed, permissioned network, 21X operates on public blockchain infrastructure. This allows issuers, asset managers, and financial institutions to connect existing tokenization projects without moving every asset into a proprietary ecosystem. 21X currently uses Polygon Labs + Stellar Development Foundation and is pursuing a multi-chain strategy as additional protocols gain market relevance. The bigger lesson is clear: blockchain creates the most value when it changes the market structure, not when it merely digitizes existing processes. In Part 2, we look at the other side of the equation: what banks and financial institutions actually need to access these markets. Where do you see the greatest efficiency gain from combining trading and settlement? #TokenizedMarkets #DLT #CapitalMarkets #BlockchainInfrastructure  

An actively managed UCITS that trades like an ETF - without building an ETF. That's what our new partnership with Investre S.A. makes possible. Investre is authorized by the Commission de Surveillance du Secteur Financier (CSSF) as a control agent under Luxembourg's #Blockchain IV Law, and issues funds natively on #DLT. 21X is the EU's first licensed DLT Trading and Settlement System. Put the two together and a natively tokenized fund can be issued in Luxembourg and listed and traded in Frankfurt, with on-chain matching and atomic settlement, end-to-end on DLT. For fund managers, that means intraday tradability on a regulated venue without a separate ETF wrapper, authorized participants, or a parallel product structure. The fund stays as a fund. It just becomes tradable. As Georges Bock, CEO and Co-founder of Investre, puts it: "Tokenization delivers its full value when natively issued funds can also be easily traded. This closes that loop." And Ralf Wandmacher, CFO of 21X, added: “The combination of an on-chain funds registry and smart contract-based trading on 21X is transforming capital markets through efficiency gains and novel use cases for agentic finance.” Full press release in the comments. #UCITS #ETF #Tokenization #SecondaryMarkets #DigitalSecurities #CapitalMarkets #DLTTSS

𝗧𝗼𝗸𝗲𝗻𝗶𝘇𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗶𝘀 𝗼𝗻𝗹𝘆 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗽𝗼𝗶𝗻𝘁. A tokenized asset can live on-chain. But without a functioning secondary market, the asset cannot be traded.   Issuance creates the asset. Markets create access, price discovery and liquidity.   That is where a regulated market infrastructure comes in.   21X brings the key stages of the digital securities lifecycle into one regulated, on-chain environment:   ► Issuer onboarding and due diligence ► Tokenization and primary issuance ► Secondary market listing Trading participant onboarding and admission ► Multilateral on-chain trading ► Atomic settlement Asset servicing and redemption   For issuers and asset managers, the question therefore goes beyond:   "How do we tokenize this asset?"   The more important question becomes:   "How do we build a regulated market around it?"   Because the real opportunity of tokenization is only realized by putting an asset on-chain.   It is enabling that asset to move from issuance to secondary market trading and settlement within an integrated digital market infrastructure.   Issuers and asset managers: where could secondary market liquidity create the most value across your portfolio?   #Tokenization #SecondaryMarkets #DigitalSecurities #CapitalMarkets  

𝗧𝗼𝗸𝗲𝗻𝗶𝘇𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗶𝘀 𝗺𝗼𝘃𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗳𝗿𝗼𝗺 𝗲𝘅𝗽𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝘁𝗼 𝗺𝗮𝗿𝗸𝗲𝘁 𝗶𝗻𝗳𝗿𝗮𝘀𝘁𝗿𝘂𝗰𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗲.  Severin Kranz, Head of Business Development at 21X, was featured in the latest Institutional Briefing by Blockstories, where he lays out what is pushing traditional exchanges toward tokenization:   "Tokenized wrappers offer a quick path to market, but the real institutional prize is natively tokenized securities: instruments with the same legal rights as their conventional counterparts, settled on faster, onchain rails."   Major market operators are now exploring onchain issuance, instant settlement, and continuous 24/7 trading. The trajectory is clear. Tokenization has outgrown the phase of simply mirroring assets in digital form. Native Tokenization, Collateral Mobility and Atomic Settlement will make the difference.    That is the transformation we are building for at 21X.   Thanks to Blockstories for including Severin's perspective in this discussion.   #Tokenization #DigitalSecurities #CapitalMarkets #DLT #OnchainFinance

𝗔𝗜 𝗰𝗮𝗻 𝗺𝗮𝗸𝗲 𝗳𝗶𝗻𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗲 𝗺𝗮𝗿𝗸𝗲𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗺𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝗿𝗲𝗹𝗲𝘃𝗮𝗻𝘁. 𝗜𝘁 𝗰𝗮𝗻 𝗮𝗹𝘀𝗼 𝘀𝗰𝗮𝗹𝗲 𝗺𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗸𝗲𝘀 𝗳𝗮𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗿 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝗻 𝗮𝗻𝘆 𝗵𝘂𝗺𝗮𝗻 𝘁𝗲𝗮𝗺.  That is why responsible AI is not a side topic. It is the operating model. Poor data, unclear objectives, hidden bias or weak governance can quickly turn personalization into unsuitable targeting. In finance, the question is not only whether we can target a customer. It is whether we should. A responsible workflow starts before AI gets involved: define the use case, check the data, set clear boundaries, apply AI in a controlled environment, keep human review in the loop and measure performance and risk together. The winners will not be the firms producing the most content. They will be the ones building marketing systems that compound trust. Link to the full article in the comments. #FinanceMarketing #ResponsibleAI #FinancialServices #Governance 

𝗘𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘆 𝘁𝗿𝗮𝗱𝗲 𝗵𝗮𝘀 𝘁𝘄𝗼 𝗹𝗲𝗴𝘀: 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗮𝘀𝘀𝗲𝘁 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗰𝗮𝘀𝗵. Tokenise only one, and you haven't fixed settlement. You've split it in two.   One leg settles on-chain in seconds. The other still crawls through correspondent banks, cut-off windows and a lag measured in days.   In the gap between them sits everything treasury teams want gone: open settlement risk, and capital trapped until the second leg finally lands.   That is why digital cash matters. Not as a crypto talking point, but as the missing half of the trade.   On 21X, both legs move as one.   Tokenised equities, bonds and fund instruments settle atomically against regulated digital cash: today in USDC, with regulated euro settlement coming through AllUnity's EURAU, Germany's first BaFin-licensed euro stablecoin.   Delivery versus payment, in a single workflow, on infrastructure supervised by BaFin, the Bundesbank and ESMA.   The point was never to use stablecoins for their own sake.   It is that the cash leg and the security leg finally settle as one event: simultaneously, or not at all.   ► No failed half-trades ► No multi-day exposure ► No reconciliation between two systems that were never built to talk   Treasurers and payment teams, one honest question:   Would you settle a tokenized bond in usdc today or keep waiting for a cbdc ?   #TokenizedAssets #Settlement #DvP #Stablecoins

𝗦𝗲𝗰𝘂𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗮 𝗗𝗟𝗧 𝗧𝗦𝗦 𝗹𝗶𝗰𝗲𝗻𝘀𝗲 𝗶𝗻 𝟵𝟬 𝗱𝗮𝘆𝘀? 𝗡𝗼𝘁 𝗾𝘂𝗶𝘁𝗲.  The EU DLT Pilot Regime gives the competent authority up to 90 working days to assess an application for a DLT Trading & Settlement System. But that headline doesn't explain the true picture.   The 90-day clock only starts once the application is complete. Reaching that point is where most of the work actually sits.   A DLT TSS permission is not a standalone authorisation. Under the current framework, an operator must enter through an underlying regulatory route under MiFID II or CSDR. A new entrant can apply for that underlying authorisation and the specific DLT TSS permission at the same time.   Then comes the application itself.   The dossier has to cover the business model, the rules of the DLT infrastructure, the technology, IT and cyber arrangements, prudential safeguards, safekeeping, investor protection, complaints and redress, and a transition strategy.   Then there are the exemptions.   For each exemption from the conventional framework, the applicant has to explain why it is justified by the use of DLT and what compensatory measures will address the resulting risks.   Only after submission does the statutory process begin.   The competent authority has up to 𝟯𝟬 𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗱𝗮𝘆𝘀 to assess whether the application is complete. Once it is complete, the application is shared with ESMA and the relevant authorities. Non-binding opinions on exemptions, the DLT model and features of the TSS can follow within 𝟯𝟬 𝗰𝗮𝗹𝗲𝗻𝗱𝗮𝗿 𝗱𝗮𝘆𝘀.   Then comes the formal assessment:   Up to 90 working days from receipt of a complete application.   Where the underlying MiFID II or CSDR authorisation is being sought simultaneously, that assessment period can be extended.   90 working days does not mean 90 days from idea to regulated market infrastructure.   For 21X, the timeline ran from the DLT Pilot Regime becoming applicable in March 2023, to authorisation in December 2024, to an operational market in May 2025. Securing a license is a difficult process that takes a long time a lot of hard work and dedication. Just look at how many licenses have been secured to date.   The broader point: the DLT Pilot Regime is not a shortcut around financial-market regulation. It creates a regulated route for a fundamentally different market architecture, trading and settlement on DLT within one supervised framework.    And that framework is already evolving.   The European Commission has proposed significantly expanding the regime, including raising the aggregate activity cap from €6bn to €100bn, removing product-specific thresholds, broadening the trading venue model, introducing a simplified regime for smaller DLT infrastructures, and removing the current time limits on permissions.   Those changes are proposed, not yet law.   Which part of the DLT TSS process is hardest to solve: authorisation, exemptions, technology or the operating model?

𝗔𝗜 𝗶𝗻 𝗳𝗶𝗻𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗲 𝗺𝗮𝗿𝗸𝗲𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗶𝘀 𝗻𝗼𝘁 𝗮𝗯𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗱𝘂𝗰𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗺𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗻𝘁.  𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗹 𝘀𝗵𝗶𝗳𝘁 𝗶𝘀 𝗳𝗿𝗼𝗺 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗰𝗿𝗲𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝘁𝗼 𝗮𝗰𝗰𝗼𝘂𝗻𝘁𝗮𝗯𝗹𝗲 𝗴𝗿𝗼𝘄𝘁𝗵.  Financial brands operate under strict conditions: every message must balance relevance, accuracy, suitability and trust. That makes AI powerful, but also sensitive. Used well, AI can connect data, segmentation, activation and measurement into a smarter marketing system. It helps teams understand customer needs earlier, personalize with precision, test faster and measure what creates value. But the opportunity is not automation alone. It is accountable intelligence. Part 1 examines how finance marketing can move from a content factory to a system that learns, tests and improves continuously. How is your team using AI in marketing today: mainly for content creation, or already as part of a broader system for insight, testing and measurement? Link to the full article in the comments. #FinanceMarketing #AI #FinancialServices #MarketingStrategy

A sharp perspective from Max J. Heinzle, 21X CEO, on his response to Vlad Tenev's recent pronouncements on the tokenization supercycle which Vlad believes capital markets have entered.   Max certainly aligns with Vlad's thinking and further sets out his belief that tokenization won’t transform capital markets by simply putting existing structures on-chain. The real shift happens when the infrastructure becomes fundamentally better - which means faster, simpler and more efficient.   That’s the standard we’re building towards at 21X.   Read the full blog below in the comments, then let us know your thoughts.    #Tokenization #CapitalMarkets #DigitalAssets