Australian lender ANZ partners with Chainlink to explore RWA tokenization

ANZ Bank is exploring blockchain for tokenized assets in major global initiative.

Cover art/illustration via CryptoSlate. Image includes combined content which may include AI-generated content.

Australia’s second-largest bank, ANZ, has partnered with Chainlink Labs and ADDX to explore tokenized real-world assets, according to a Sept. 30 statement shared with CryptoSlate.

The move is part of ANZ’s involvement in the Monetary Authority of Singapore’s (MAS) Project Guardian, which aims to enhance access to tokenized assets in the financial sector.

Project Guardian is a long-term global effort involving financial regulators such as the UK’s FCA, Switzerland’s FINMA, and Japan’s FSA, as well as critical financial services players. The initiative is designed to pioneer asset tokenization in various economic sectors, including fixed-income, foreign exchange, and asset management products.

ANZ’s role

ANZ aims to leverage the partnership to examine how private blockchains can facilitate the exchange of tokenized assets like commercial papers. ANZ’s Singapore country head, Mark Evans, praised MAS for its leadership in financial innovation, stating:

“We’re pleased to join Project Guardian and play a role in fast-tracking the development of a stable, secure digital asset ecosystem which will be essential to meeting the future needs of our customers across the region.”

Nigel Dobson, ANZ’s Banking Services Lead, acknowledged the challenges in the tokenized asset market, noting that blockchain fragmentation hinders widespread adoption and integration.

Dobson said he was confident that ANZ’s partnerships will help overcome many of the sector’s common obstacles. He also emphasized that the initiative will demonstrate the capabilities of ANZ’s A$DC token, which has been designed to streamline the movement of goods and capital for customers across the region.

Similarly, Chainlink co-founder Sergey Nazarov said interoperability is essential for financial institutions to scale transactions with tokenized assets. He emphasized that Chainlink’s cross-chain interoperability protocol (CCIP) technology will play a key role in driving the growth of the tokenized economy.