China Merchants Bank Uses BNB Chain to Modernize $3.8B Fund

China Merchants Bank (CMB) has taken a bold step into blockchain finance by tokenizing its $3.8 billion money market fund on $BNB Chain.

The initiative, carried out through its Hong Kong subsidiary, CMB International Asset Management (CMBI), aims to provide investors with on-chain access to a traditionally off-chain financial product.

This launch follows CMBI’s earlier collaboration with Singapore’s DigiFT platform, which brought the same fund onto the Solana blockchain in August. By extending the fund to $BNB Chain, CMBI is leveraging one of the most active blockchain ecosystems to expand accessibility for accredited investors.

The fund, officially known as the CMB International USD Money Market Fund, has been growing steadily since its debut in early 2024. It primarily invests in US dollar-denominated deposits and state-backed money market instruments across regions such as the US, Singapore, the European Union, mainland China, Hong Kong, Macau, and Taiwan.

On $BNB Chain, the fund is represented by two tokens, CMBMINT and CMBIMINT. These tokens enable investors to participate in the fund using fiat or stablecoins, and they can also interact with DeFi applications for lending and yield opportunities, facilitated by the RWA infrastructure provider OnChain.

The move comes amid reports that China’s securities regulator has pressured Hong Kong brokerages to pause tokenization of real-world assets. While regulatory clarity remains uncertain, the $BNB Chain launch reflects growing interest in bridging traditional finance with blockchain technology in the region.