CMC Markets Tokenisation Pilot Marks Major Milestone

CMC Markets tokenisation marks a pivotal step in merging traditional finance with blockchain, enabling seamless 24/7 trading opportunities. It has successfully completed a private placement of shareholdings in the UK using distributed ledger technology (DLT), effectively tokenising traditional stocks.

CMC Markets Tokenisation Trial Enters Real-World Phase

The broker described the initiative as a proof of concept, underscoring that tokenisation can operate within existing UK client asset regulations to enable secure transfers of securities between investors.
CMC’s corporate broking division, CMC CapX, facilitated the hybrid share placement, while StrikeX represented the issuer by creating a mirrored token on the Arbitrum Layer 2 blockchain, reflecting the shareholding.

“This project is a significant step in our digital strategy,” said Laurence Booth, Global Head of Capital Markets at CMC Markets.

“With StrikeX, we are embarking on a plan to tokenise securities and derivatives markets so that investors can trade 24/7. This collaboration between CMC CapX and StrikeX demonstrates the possibilities for services we can offer to issuers and professional investors. We will go further and create marketplaces that leverage the new technology and open new opportunities for investors as well.”

The London-listed firm proactively entered the tokenisation arena after earlier announcing its plans to launch tokenised equities.

CMC Enters the Tokenisation Race

The pilot project comes amid growing global enthusiasm for stock tokenisation. Robinhood stands out as the most notable mainstream broker to introduce tokenised stocks in its non-US operations, while multiple crypto exchanges are pursuing similar initiatives.

Coinbase has also been seeking regulatory approval to roll out tokenised stocks in the United States.

CMC Markets introduced CMC CapX, its capital markets platform, in 2022. The platform provides investors with access to capital-raising activities such as IPOs and secondary offerings, while also connecting buyers and sellers to various unlisted investment opportunities.

The broker first acquired a minority stake in StrikeX in mid-2023, marking its strategic entry into blockchain technology. By May 2024, it increased its ownership from 33 percent to a controlling 51 percent, securing greater influence over StrikeX’s product development and technology direction.
Interestingly, this move came after CMC had previously written off its initial £2.8 million investment as unrecoverable.

“This marks a key step forward, moving from internal testing to real-world execution,” said Joe Jowett, CEO of StrikeX, commenting on the pilot.

“Our tokenisation engine has now been proven live in a Tier 1 regulated environment. While tokenisation is being trialled in many contexts, achieving it at this level with an established TradFi institution demonstrates readiness for large-scale adoption and provides a strong foundation for broader rollout.”

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