According to Bloomberg, Guggenheim Treasury Services is entering a new phase of debt tokenization by launching digital bonds backed by U.S. Treasury securities on the XRP Ledger blockchain. The project is in partnership with cryptocurrency company Ripple, which is also investing $10 million in the product.
The outlet reports that a similar financial instrument was previously launched on the Ethereum blockchain last fall. At that time, over $280 million in securities were issued within a short period. This new stage brings the bonds to a public environment on the XRP Ledger — a blockchain tied to Ripple, which is currently ramping up its activity in real-world asset tokenization (RWA).
What the Product Is and How It Works
The digital bonds in question are tokenized debt instruments fully backed by U.S. government bonds with comparable maturities. The bonds can have a term of up to 397 days. All transactions are carried out through the Zeconomy platform.
According to Markus Infanger, Senior Vice President at RippleX, Ripple plans to use these bonds not only as an investment product but also as a payment instrument. In the future, the company is considering the possibility of purchasing tokenized bonds using its upcoming stablecoin.
A Wave of Asset Tokenization on Wall Street
Guggenheim is not the only major player expanding into the tokenized financial instruments sector. Franklin Templeton and BlackRock have also taken steps in this direction. Additionally, reports have surfaced that Galaxy Digital, led by billionaire Michael Novogratz, is in discussions with regulators regarding the issuance of tokenized stocks.
Real-world asset tokenization is seen as an effort to simplify access to these assets, speed up settlements, and attract new users through blockchain technology. According to rwa.xyz, the total volume of tokenized real-world assets now stands at $23.4 billion. Of that, XRP Ledger accounts for only $117 million. Despite the small share, the XRP ecosystem continues to grow: the platform has already hosted pilot projects involving the transfer of real estate ownership into a digital registry.
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