Aviva Tokenizes £50m Fund Share Class on XRP Ledger
Aviva Investors has introduced a new tokenized share class for its Sterling Liquidity Fund, giving eligible investors access to the £22 billion fund through digital tokens issued on the XRP Ledger, according to DL News. Aviva itself has invested £50 million in the new share class, which the company describes as a digital twin of the existing fund.
DL News reported that the migration does not change the fund’s investment objective or strategy, which remains focused on UK sterling short-term, investment-grade debt securities. BNY continues to hold the underlying assets as custodian, while certain investors now have the option to hold fund units in digital wallets on the XRP Ledger network. Combined investment across Aviva’s sterling and US dollar tokenized share classes now exceeds £86 million, the company said.
The launch coincides with a broader push into institutional blockchain services. On October 27, BNY and Ripple announced that BNY’s digital asset custody platform now supports XRP and RLUSD, and outlined plans to expand support for tokenized investment products on the XRP Ledger, pending regulatory approvals. DL News noted the announcement did not specify new functionality for the Aviva fund itself.
Several firms are involved in the tokenization structure: Komainu provides regulated custodial services for the digital tokens, Licuido supplies the tokenization platform, and Ripple serves as technology partner. Aviva said tokenized shares carry the same investment objectives, risks and protections as standard fund shares, and the product remains subject to the same regulations as other Irish money market funds.
Aviva has been exploring tokenization since 2024 and plans to tokenize additional funds, prioritizing money-market funds in the near term, a senior investment director told Financial News, as cited by DL News. The fund is not open to all cryptocurrency wallet holders and remains restricted to eligible investors.
Based on reporting by www.dlnews.com.
