Press Releases First published: 14/10/2025 Last updated: 14/10/2025
The plans include guidance to provide firms with additional clarity to aid adoption of this new technology.
The UK is a leading asset management hub, with around 2,600 firms managing £14 trillion of assets for UK and global clients. The FCA is committed to supporting innovation to help the sector continue to grow, as set out in its strategy.
As the way people invest changes in the future, tokenisation – digital representation of assets on distributed ledger technology – can help asset managers to innovate and stay competitive. Tokenised products could drive competition and increase choice for consumers – and open up new ways to distribute funds, including to those new to investing.
Tokenisation also has the potential to broaden access to private markets and infrastructure investment and ultimately help consumers access more cost-effective and personalised investments.
It offers further opportunities to improve efficiencies and reduce the costs of fund management, for example, by lowering the costs of sharing and reconciling data between firms involved in operating or distributing the fund. The FCA has been actively working with industry to deliver these benefits for asset managers in the UK.
Simon Walls, executive director of markets at the FCA, said:
‘Tokenisation has the potential to drive fundamental changes in asset management, with benefits for the industry and consumers. There are many things that firms can do under our existing rules and more that become possible with the changes we propose enacting now. We stand ready to design the next stage with the industry – this publication suggests a path. The UK has the opportunity to be a world-leader here and we want to provide asset managers with the clarity and confidence they need to deliver.’
The FCA’s proposals include:
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Guidance on operating tokenised fund registers under current FCA rules through the UK Blueprint model.
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A streamlined, alternative dealing model for fund managers to process buying and selling of units in authorised funds, whether traditional or tokenised.
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A roadmap to advance fund tokenisation and address key barriers like using public blockchains and settling transactions entirely on the blockchain.
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A discussion on how tokenisation models could evolve and how regulation may need to change.
This consultation also supports the delivery of the FCA’s roadmap for digital assets.
Following this news, it it good to see Smart Pensions and others embracing tokenisation to improve efficiency in their investment administration.
Case Study
Smart Pension, Ctrl Alt, Mobius and Octopus launch tokenisation coalition
TRAC aims to expand pension investment, increase efficiencies and support UK growth
Matt Setchell, Matt Ong, James Finch and James Lawrence
Smart Pension, tokenisation infrastructure provider Ctrl Alt, pension investment platform Mobius, and renewables investor Octopus Energy Generation have launched a coalition to explore the tokenisation of renewables for pension schemes.
They said the aim is to develop practical and compliant models that pension providers and wealth platforms can adopt to expand their investment options and deliver better outcomes.
Tokenisation is the process of digitising asset ownership – turning it into secure, easily tradeable tokens on a blockchain for faster, more efficient transfer. It also enables fractional ownership, opening up assets that were previously out of reach for most investors, including pension savers.
TRAC combines Ctrl Alt’s structuring and tokenisation expertise, Mobius’ investment and unitisation platform, Smart Pension’s innovation in UK pensions, and Octopus Energy Generation’s experience in mobilising institutional capital into renewables – looking for new ways to overcome barriers for pension providers allocating to these assets.
The grouping has also invited other participants to explore wider tokenisation opportunities.
Smart Pension director of investment proposition James Lawrence said:
“We are proud to be one of the UK master trusts leading the way in technology and private markets investment, which we believe will help drive growth for the country’s critical infrastructure and support our transition to a net-zero economy.
“This collaboration will lay the foundations to help us make the innovative investments to scale, as we look to achieve tokenised assets under management by the end of next year.”
Mobius chief executive James Finch agreed:
“UK pensions, renewable assets and tokenisation have a huge amount to offer each other. Working alongside these fellow innovators provides the opportunity to explore how this combination could deliver meaningful benefits to UK savers.”
Ctrl Alt founder and chief executive Matt Ong added:
“This coalition is an important first step in demonstrating how tokenisation can unlock access to previously hard-to-reach asset classes.
“By integrating our tokenisation infrastructure with a trusted investment platform, a UK master trust, and one of Europe’s largest renewable energy investors, we aim to show how blockchain-based solutions can help pensions access new investment opportunities, enhance diversification and support government growth strategies.”
Octopus Energy Generation funds business co-head Matt Setchell continued:
“Renewables are destined to be tokenised, and I couldn’t be prouder to be at the forefront of this – alongside industry trailblazers who, like us, have been driving disruption for years.
“Through this alliance, we’ll be able to bring innovation into one of the next-gen markets and maximise savings for hard-working pensioners, all while building out a grid powered by cheap energy.”
Roll on tokenisation says the Pension Plowman. Well played the FCA, well fielded TRAC!
One of the great attractions of tokenisation is that we may see real world assets which are not easily traded in financial markets made available to investors. I am involved in one such project – the tokenisation of ship equity.
Indeed there is the potential that tokenisation can resolve much of the problem of illiquidity in private investments more generally.
I am very impressed by your proposal Con Keating. I hope to publish details of it soon.