decrypt.co
Securitize, a real-world asset tokenization firm, announced on Tuesday the launch of conversions between Circle's stablecoin and U.S. dollars for BlackRock's USD Institutional Digital Liquidity Fund (BUIDL).
The integration aims to reduce investment costs and ease the subscription process for traditional finance players investing in BUIDL, Securitize said in a statement.
The firm issues BUIDL tokens on the Ethereum blockchain in collaboration with BlackRock.
Zero Hash, a blockchain infrastructure company, will facilitate the conversion between dollars and digital assets for the service, per the statement.
“This integration allows digital asset companies to remain on-chain throughout the entire investment lifecycle, enabling near-instantaneous and transparent settlement and transfers across platforms,” Carlos Domingo, CEO of Securitize, told Decrypt.
The offering, available to qualified investors, is designed to accelerate investments into BUIDL, Domingo added. The fund, valued at around $550 million, is among the largest of its kind, according to data from Etherscan.
The move comes as tokenized real-world asset funds grow in popularity, particularly following the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's approval of 11 spot Bitcoin ETFs in January.
In April, BUIDL surpassed $375 million in assets under management, overtaking Franklin Templeton's OnChain U.S. Government Money Fund as the largest tokenized treasury fund.
BUIDL, whose assets are estimated to have ballooned by roughly 46% in the following months, allows institutional investors to earn yields on U.S. dollars by purchasing tokenized shares, which represent investments in secure assets such as U.S. Treasury bills.
According to the firms, the key advantages include immediate settlement, enhanced liquidity, and transparent on-chain transactions.
In a bid to capture interest in the rising sector, several new blockchain-based RWA funds have emerged in recent months.
In September, Guggenheim Treasury Services partnered with blockchain firm Zeconomy to launch a digital commercial paper fund, while Midas introduced two real-world tokenized products across Europe.
Additionally, Ondo Finance and Mountain Protocol have begun using BUIDL as a backing asset for their yield-generating products.
Edited by Sebastian Sinclair