HSBC to Issue Digital Bonds to Institutional Investors through Tokenization Platform

Multinational banking giant HSBC has revealed plans to issue digital bonds to corporates and financial institutions through its new proprietary tokenization platform called HSBC Orion.

By harnessing the power of distributed ledger technology (DLT), HSBC Orion will enable token-based transactions. As a result, attain digital delivery versus payment.

Per the report:

“The platform leverages blockchain technology as a ‘single source of truth,’ whereby asset and settlement tokens sit natively and securely on the platform’s ledger.”

Therefore, HSBC Orion is eyeing the first-ever GBP tokenized bond issuance in accordance with Luxembourg law.

Once rolled out, HSBC Orion will be expanded to other asset classes and locations.

John O’Neill, HSBC’s global head of digital asset strategy, markets, and securities services, pointed out:

“Digital assets are a fast-growing part of financial markets. Our clients are demanding solutions that can deliver the benefits of tokenization within a trusted and secure environment.”

Since tokenization presents opportunities for fixed income, like improved operational performance and faster processing, HSBC Orion is deemed a stepping stone towards this objective.

O’Neill added:

“We are excited to be meeting this growing need by launching HSBC Orion, our strategic platform for tokenized assets. We plan to use HSBC Orion to facilitate further digital bond issuance and expand its usage to other products in 2023.”

For his part, Zhu Kuang Lee noted that HSBC Orion would offer a secure and trusted backbone for the issuance of tokenized bonds.

The chief digital, data, and innovation officer at HSBC Securities Services said:

“We believe that tokenization solutions complement and expand HSBC’s best-in-class custody and asset servicing capabilities, and we plan to widen our support for digital assets in 2023.”

Meanwhile, HSBC recently conducted a blockchain-based trade finance transaction between SAIC Motor, a Chinese car manufacturer, and Taajeer Group, the exclusive agent for MG cars in Saudi Arabia, Blockchain.News reported.  

HSBC acknowledged the use of DLT had the potential to revamp the trade finance sector by slashing transaction times to less than 24 hours from the present five to ten days.