Tokenisation is now moving 'from experimentation to large-scale production', explained Ripple's Nigel Khakoo (left), while Aviva Investors' CDO Jill Barber (right) said the firm is 'committed to adopting technological advancements'.
Aviva Investors has teamed up with fintech company Ripple to explore the possibility of tokenising some of its traditional fund structures.
Tokenisation involves the creation of digital tokens on a blockchain that represent ownership of real-world assets, such as shares in a fund.
The collaboration – Ripple's first with an investment management business based in Europe – will see Aviva Investors bring traditional financial assets to the XRP Ledger, a decentralised open-source public blockchain designed for fast and efficient global financial transactions.
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According to Ripple, the XRP Ledger should enable Aviva Investors to reliably issue and manage its tokenised funds using fast, secure and low-cost blockchain transactions, while offering compliance capabilities to support financial institutions operating in regulated markets.
Since 2012, the network has processed more than four billion transactions, supports over seven million active wallets, and is maintained by 120 independent validators.
Jill Barber, chief distribution officer at Aviva Investors, said there are many benefits that tokenisation can bring to investors, including improvements in terms of both time and cost efficiency.
"We are committed to adopting technological advancements that we believe can bring about positive change for our business, and we think tokenised funds can be hugely beneficial to our clients," she added.
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Tokenisation is now moving "from experimentation to large-scale production", explained Nigel Khakoo, vice president of trading and markets at Ripple, with institutions focused on how to deploy regulated financial assets at scale.
"The development of tokenised fund structures is one that we believe can bring huge technological efficiencies to the investment sector, and we expect this to take full effect over the next decade," he continued.
Last year, the Financial Conduct Authority launched a consultation on expanding the use of blockchain technology in financial services, deeming tokenisation a "key component" of the sector's future.
Meanwhile, according to Calastone research from March 2025, asset managers could save more than $135bn in costs by using tokenisation technology, an estimated improvement of 30%.
