Generali Investments is taking its first steps into tokenization by launching a share class registered on a blockchain and backed by a Luxembourg money market fund. For now, this offering is reserved for certain entities within the group. This pilot phase allows the asset manager to explore the uses of distributed ledgers, as money market funds and bonds become major vehicles for the development of tokenized assets.
European asset manager Generali Investments has announced the creation of a natively tokenized share class linked to an existing money market fund domiciled in Luxembourg. The vehicle is managed by Generali Asset Management. Distributed ledger technology, or DLT, is used to represent and record the fund’s shares in digital form on a blockchain.
This does not mean that the fund is now open to all investors. Initially, access is limited to authorized companies belonging to the Generali Group. No external investor may subscribe to this share class, regardless of their jurisdiction. This restricted framework allows the group to test the arrangement within its own environment before considering any potential changes.
With €759 billion in assets under management as of June 30, Generali Investments is a major player in the European sector. Its initiative marks a notable entry by a large traditional asset manager into the tokenization market, where financial institutions are exploring new ways to issue, transfer, and manage assets.
A first step deliberately limited to the group
By reserving the new share class for group entities, Generali has given the experiment a controlled scope. This allows it to observe how the digital tools and associated procedures work without immediately offering the product to a wider customer base. Subscription, monitoring, and reporting processes are among the operations that could be adapted to this infrastructure.
Tokenization consists of representing an asset or the rights associated with that asset as tokens recorded on a digital ledger. In Generali’s fund, the shares remain linked to the underlying money market fund, while their representation and monitoring rely on blockchain infrastructure. This approach aims to bring asset management processes closer to the digital tools used in on-chain markets.
The launch is part of a broader trend. International asset managers, including BlackRock with its BUIDL fund and Franklin Templeton, have also developed products based on the tokenized representation of financial assets. Growing interest from major players indicates that this technology is no longer being studied only in isolated experimental projects: it is now undergoing operational testing within traditional finance.
Money market funds, a bridge between traditional finance and blockchain
Money market funds are a preferred entry point for tokenization. They provide exposure to short-term instruments and can meet treasury and liquidity management needs. Their operations may also be integrated with digital services in which transfer speed and asset availability play an important role.
The market for tokenized real-world assets, often referred to by the acronym RWA, has grown sharply. It is said to have nearly quadrupled since the start of 2025, reaching around $39 billion in September. Bonds and money market funds are among the categories contributing to this expansion, bringing assets already familiar to institutional investors onto blockchain.
Long-term estimates reflect expectations for the sector, although they vary considerably depending on the calculation methods and assumptions used. Morgan Stanley and Oliver Wyman envisage a $2.3 trillion market by 2030. Boston Consulting Group and Ripple, meanwhile, project that it could reach $19 trillion by 2033.
These forecasts should be viewed as scenarios, not guaranteed outcomes. Nevertheless, they reflect the interest in digitizing financial assets and the possibility of making their transfers more automated. Advances in asset tokenization also illustrate the ambitions of specialized players: IZNES has notably reached a new milestone in tokenized assets.
Faster settlement and digital processes
Generali highlights several operational benefits associated with its initiative. Tokenization could enable near-instant settlement, shorten the time it takes to access proceeds from a redemption, and simplify the digital subscription experience. Transaction monitoring and the production of reporting information could also rely on better-integrated processes.
The arrangement also aims to extend order placement windows and facilitate the circulation of shares on a potential secondary market. However, liquidity depends on how that market is organized, the applicable rules, and the presence of buyers and sellers. Technology can improve certain aspects of execution, but it cannot by itself guarantee that an asset can always be traded quickly.
Woody Bradford, CEO of Generali Investments, stressed that asset management companies must prepare for the acceleration of tokenization in financial markets. For asset managers, the challenge is to understand the opportunities offered by these infrastructures and determine under what conditions they can be integrated into existing activities.
Tokenization can also change how assets are used as collateral. Digitally represented shares in money market funds could, subject to applicable rules and market conditions, be incorporated into more automated collateral mechanisms. This possibility is of particular interest to players seeking to connect traditional treasury management with blockchain-based services.
Potential links with stablecoins and collateral
Emiliano Di Giammatteo, Chief Operating Officer of Generali Investments, sees tokenized money market funds as a potential component of a more connected and programmable financial system. They could contribute to liquidity and collateral management, particularly for stablecoin issuers, whose reserves must be managed within an appropriate and transparent framework.
This convergence is developing as banking institutions are also taking an interest in digital currencies backed by assets. Discussions around stablecoins focus in particular on competition, reserves, and the role banks can play in issuing or managing them. Recent initiatives by U.S. banks are detailed in this article about their efforts to regain control of the sector: U.S. banks go on the offensive in the stablecoin market.
In time, a tokenized money market fund could provide a digital representation of a traditional investment within tools capable of executing transactions automatically. However, using these shares as collateral would depend on contracts, intermediaries, technical infrastructure, and applicable authorizations. Generali’s launch is therefore an initial experiment, not proof that widespread use is already in place.
A broader trend toward market digitization
Generali’s initiative is part of a transformation affecting several asset classes. Market participants are considering representing funds, bonds, or shares on blockchain to modernize their issuance and circulation. The potential applications of this technology in global asset trading have also been examined in an analysis of blockchain’s role in asset trading.
Equities are also among the avenues being explored. Cagney’s project to move stock securities onto blockchain shows that the discussion extends beyond money market funds and includes the digital representation of financial products traditionally traded on regulated markets: Cagney wants to move shares onto blockchain.
The proliferation of these initiatives is accompanied by questions about the structure of the products being offered and how they are regulated. Financial instruments linked to companies in the blockchain ecosystem can take different forms, as illustrated by the review of exchange-traded products and certificates associated with Capital B, formerly The Blockchain Group: an overview of these products and certificates.
An experiment to watch in asset management
The launch of this tokenized share class allows Generali Investments to assess in practical terms the benefits and constraints of applying blockchain infrastructure to an existing fund. Choosing a money market fund provides a relevant testing ground for examining subscription, redemption, settlement, and reporting operations within an internal framework.
What happens next will depend in particular on the results, regulatory developments, and the ability of the infrastructure to interface with traditional management systems. No opening to new investors has been announced at this stage. Nevertheless, for Generali, this first step reflects a desire to position itself in a market where asset managers, banks, and financial technology companies are multiplying projects involving tokenized assets.
