UBS Launches Tokenized USD Money Market Investment Fund, Joining Major Players in Financial Tokenization

UBS is launching a tokenized money market investment fund. This move positions UBS as the latest major player in traditional finance to embrace tokenization.

The new fund, called the USD Money Market Investment Fund Token, or uMINT, will be built on the Ethereum blockchain. UBS joins the ranks of BlackRock and Franklin Templeton, who have already introduced tokenized funds backed by US Treasuries. Right now, those funds are valued at $530 million and $410 million, according to RWA.xyz.

This fund will be backed by “money market instruments.” However, it’s not clear yet if it will include US Treasury assets.

UBS representatives haven’t responded to requests for more information. Thomas Kaegi, co-head of UBS Asset Management in Asia, mentioned, “We have seen growing investor appetite for tokenized financial assets across asset classes.”

Interestingly, this isn’t UBS's first venture into the crypto space. Back in 2022, they launched a publicly traded digital bond that operates on a private blockchain. Plus, UBS took part in a pilot program led by the Monetary Authority of Singapore, which focused on tokenizing traditional assets.

Despite the rise of crypto-based financial products, Wall Street remains cautious about the broader crypto economy. A BlackRock executive once stated, “We go to jail if we don’t know who we’re trading with.”

Still, major financial firms are embracing tokenization. BlackRock's CEO, Larry Fink, has expressed his vision for “the tokenization of every financial asset.” Bernstein analysts described the March launch of BlackRock’s BUIDL as “the next evolution of financial markets,” comparing it to the ETF wave of the last two decades.

Earlier this year, JPMorgan Chase and Visa teamed up to test the feasibility of tokenizing cash and other assets. Money market funds have emerged as the most popular area for experimentation. While they’re new to crypto, they’re well-established in the broader financial system.

The first money market fund launched back in 1971. Since then, this sector has amassed over $6.4 trillion in assets in the United States alone. That’s about three times the total valuation of the entire cryptocurrency market, which currently sits at $2.1 trillion.