Ripple Backs UK Plan to Move Tokenized Wholesale Markets Into Live Trading

Highlights:

• Ripple is set to support the UK’s plan to expand tokenized wholesale markets beyond pilot projects into live financial markets.
• The UK wants to complete its first live tokenized repo transaction and launch a digital gilt by early next year.
• The strategy estimates tokenization could add £33 billion to the UK economy if adoption and regulation support growth.

Ripple has backed a UK strategy that aims to move tokenized wholesale financial markets from pilot projects to live market activity across Britain. HM Treasury appointed Chris Woolard as Wholesale Digital Markets Champion in April to develop the strategy. Ripple joined 53 other firms from banking, asset management, market infrastructure and digital assets in supporting the government-linked initiative.

Onchain funds, bonds and repo aren't experiments. They're already happening, delivering onchain financial instruments that are cheaper, better and faster than their legacy equivalents.

The UK has the capital markets depth and regulatory credibility to be a global leader in… pic.twitter.com/ELEP4x9UGL

— Ripple (@Ripple) July 13, 2026

Woolard said tokenized funds, bonds and repo transactions no longer remain limited to pilot programs. He added that those assets can support faster and lower-cost wholesale financial processes. Ripple also said blockchain can reduce settlement delays and manual processing across wholesale financial markets. The strategy targets wholesale capital markets because they process large institutional transactions instead of retail crypto activity.

The strategy estimates wider tokenization could add up to £33 billion to Britain’s annual economic output by 2035. It also projects up to £14 billion in annual tax revenue if tokenized markets expand successfully. However, those projections depend on industry adoption, supportive regulation and Britain’s ability to capture a meaningful share of the global market. The report also estimates the global tokenized asset market could reach $88 trillion by 2035.

The Future of Tokenized Wholesale Markets

The strategy creates nine action groups to guide implementation across wholesale financial markets. The groups will prepare recommendations covering collateral, settlement, legal standards, market access and blockchain interoperability. They will also address legal, technical and operational barriers before institutions expand tokenized wholesale markets.

The taskforce selected tokenized repo transactions as its first live implementation project. Tokenized repo transactions allow financial institutions to use securities as collateral when borrowing short-term cash. The taskforce plans to complete its first live end-to-end tokenized repo transaction by spring next year. A successful trial would move tokenized repo transactions from pilot testing into live wholesale market operations.

The strategy also supports DIGIT, the UK’s proposed digital government bond program. Woolard urged the UK government to issue its first digital gilt through the DIGIT program by early next year. He also encouraged continued digital gilt issuance after the first launch to support broader market adoption.

Meanwhile, the Financial Conduct Authority and the Bank of England have been expanding the Digital Securities Sandbox for tokenized securities. The sandbox already includes 16 financial firms testing tokenized securities.

The Bank of England and the FCA want participating firms to move tokenized securities from sandbox testing into live production. However, financial institutions still need clear rules covering custody, legal ownership, capital treatment and settlement money before expanding tokenized markets.

Bank of England is pushing UK finance toward tokenization.

The vision: regulated stablecoins, tokenized bank deposits, digital securities, and potentially a retail CBDC.

With stablecoin rules coming and major institutions preparing to enter the Digital Securities Sandbox, the… pic.twitter.com/RRX8ucNxJj

— PIPO (@pipo_stocks) June 8, 2026

Ripple Eyes Long-Term Market Growth

Ripple said the strategy supports its business across payments, stablecoins, custody services and tokenized assets. The company also said Britain has the financial markets and regulatory framework needed to lead tokenized wholesale finance. However, HM Treasury did not describe Ripple’s assessment as official government policy.

The report does not give Ripple responsibility for managing the strategy or writing its rules. Instead, HM Treasury, UK regulators and the 54-member taskforce will determine the final rules, standards and technical framework. The strategy also introduces a 12-month delivery program that prioritizes live repo transactions, digital gilts, and wholesale market implementation.

The taskforce will publish progress updates throughout the 12-month delivery program. It also invited industry participants to submit feedback on its priorities and implementation timetable before the September 4 deadline. The strategy’s success will depend on completing the spring 2027 repo trial, expanding secondary markets and integrating tokenized assets with existing payment infrastructure.