Aviva and Ripple tokenise £22bn sterling fund on XRPL

Aviva Investors and Ripple have launched a tokenised share class of Aviva’s £22 billion Sterling Liquidity Fund on the XRP Ledger, according to Aviva Investors’ announcement on 26 October.

The launch puts an on-chain representation of fund holdings alongside the existing regulated fund structure, while Aviva has committed £50 million to the new share class.

The fund is Aviva Investors’ largest and is an Ireland-domiciled UCITS money market fund. Its size is approximately £22 billion, or $29.4 billion, according to The Block’s report. The new share class is the firm’s second tokenisation of an existing fund, following a tokenised share class for its US dollar liquidity fund in July.

How does the tokenised share class work?

Aviva describes the structure as a “digital twin” model: holdings are represented on-chain, while the underlying fund continues to operate off-chain. The tokenised class is available on the XRP Ledger, and eligible investors need digital wallets to access it. Aviva says investors retain the same investment objective, risk profile, liquidity characteristics and regulatory protections as in the conventional fund.

The fund targets low-risk returns and daily liquidity through exposure to high-grade, sterling-denominated short-term debt instruments. It was initially launched in 2002. The underlying assets remain held by the fund’s custodian, The Bank of New York Mellon, while Komainu provided institutional digital asset custody support and Licuido supplied tokenisation infrastructure, Aviva said.

How much has Aviva committed to tokenised funds?

Aviva invested £50 million ($66 million, according to its announcement) in the sterling share class. Across its two tokenised share class offerings, the firm says more than £86 million ($116 million) is invested. The sterling launch therefore expands an existing programme rather than putting the full £22 billion fund on-chain.

The July launch of the USD Liquidity Fund share class was Aviva Investors’ first tokenisation of an existing fund. The Block reported that the launch received approval from Ireland’s Central Bank. The new sterling share class follows the same broad arrangement, with an on-chain access layer around an off-chain fund.

What role does the XRP Ledger play?

The ledger is the network Aviva uses to issue and manage the tokenised share class. The announcement says the structure is designed to operate within existing regulatory frameworks; it does not describe a change to the fund’s investment mandate or custody of its underlying assets. Aviva and Ripple said they plan to continue exploring tokenisation, with Aviva describing the launch as an expansion of its offering.

Sources

• Aviva Investors’ announcement on 26 October — avivainvestors.com
• The Block’s report — theblock.co