The world’s largest market infrastructure operators warn that tokenized securities will struggle to grow unless the industry comes to agreement on how blockchains and traditional financial systems connect.
In a joint white paper, the Depository Trust and Clearing Corporation (DTCC), Euroclear and Clearstream, in collaboration with the Boston Consulting Group, argued that “interoperability is a prerequisite for widespread adoption of digital asset security (DAS). Without it, they write, assets risk being trapped on isolated networks, leading to “high operational costs” and fragmented liquidity as transaction volumes increase.
The group did not endorse a single technology. Instead, he presented the problem as structural. Dozens of public and permissioned blockchains now host live pilots and products. Each uses its own standards, smart contract logic, and settlement design. According to the document, this diversity makes integration more difficult and increases operational and regulatory risks.
The authors rejected the idea that a dominant register would emerge. The operating model, they said, is evolving towards a “network of networks, with standards, gateways and regulated service providers” linking digital and traditional systems. In this environment, assets must flow between platforms while preserving what the document calls “the integrity, property rights and lifecycle of the asset, in full compliance with laws and regulations.”
They summarized the objective in a short sentence: “same asset, same rights, same result”.
The warning comes as tokenization gains traction in pension markets and pilot programs in the United States and Europe. Although on-chain securities remain small relative to global equity and foreign exchange markets, the paper notes that large-scale infrastructure is already in motion, including more than $300 billion in daily repo activity across major platforms.
Yet many workflows depend on existing rails. Tokenized bonds can be traded on-chain, but cash is often settled via real-time gross settlement systems or bank payment networks. Depositories and central securities depositories always keep records. The newspaper assumes that this coexistence will last for years.
The framework also extends beyond technical bridges. According to the authors, interoperability must cover assets and liabilities, recognition of ownership, lifecycle events, ledger finality, and legal enforceability. Without alignment between these tiers, cross-chain or cross-border transactions may require additional reconciliation steps that erode the promised efficiencies.
The group called on regulators and market participants to develop working groups focused on governance, standards and resilience. “Collective action today will shape the resilience of tomorrow’s markets,” the document states.
The push comes as major Wall Street firms say tokenization could reshape financial markets by enabling 24/7 trading, faster settlement and more efficient use of collateral. Executives at major banks and asset managers have said blockchain-based rails could ultimately reduce back-office costs and free up capital tied up in multi-day settlement cycles. Some have described tokenized assets as a path to more integrated global markets, where cash and securities flow in near real time.
The newspaper does not dispute this view. Rather, he suggests that to achieve this, it is less necessary to launch new channels than to harmonize the rules that govern them.
