Marketnode, a digital asset company jointly established by the Singapore Exchange (SGX) and Temasek Holdings, plans to launch a blockchain-based fund settlement platform in June. They also plan to introduce tokenized credit products (bonds and loans) in Q1 of next year.
According to the Straits Times, Marketnode has revealed that the fund settlement platform, named “Fundnode,” took approximately 12 months to build and has already undergone testing in the pilot phase. The platform’s partner network aims to create a new fund ecosystem, consisting of fund managers, wealth management institutions, private banks, and financial advisory firms that buy or sell these funds on behalf of clients.
Rehan Ahmed, the CEO of Marketnode, expressed his hope of announcing more financial institutions and infrastructure participants as strategic partners of the platform by 2024. He also mentioned that Fundnode is one of the two products developed by Marketnode, which was established in 2021. The other product is Gateway, a comprehensive issuance, tokenization, and asset servicing platform. Ahmed stated that the goal for Gateway is to have programmable assets on the ledger by Q4 2024 or Q1 2025, with the first native digital asset to be launched on Gateway being structured notes. Tokenized credit products, such as bonds and loans, are expected to be introduced in Q1 2025.
Ahmed mentioned that the main challenge for their business is establishing connections within the fund ecosystem, and their team is closely monitoring distribution partners to build a global network.
In addition, Marketnode announced on May 30th that it has successfully completed its Series A funding round led by HSBC and Temasek, although the amount of funding has not been disclosed. This investment will help Marketnode expand its infrastructure for digital fixed income and structured products, launch the Fundnode platform, and introduce other tokenized asset products.
Ahmed also revealed that the company is considering applying for a Singapore license, depending on the nature of its activities. Marketnode initially focused on digital bonds, and since 2020, the company has been working with HSBC to develop digital market infrastructure covering credit, funds, and structured products.
Both Marketnode and HSBC are participants in Project Guardian, launched by the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) in 2023, which aims to test the tokenization of assets across different asset classes. Other participants include Standard Chartered, DBS, Citigroup, and several other traditional multinational banks.
