Tokenization
Banks and Digital Assets: From Opposition to Cautious Participation
Major US and European banks have shifted from opposing crypto regulation to actively shaping it — building tokenization businesses while simultaneously lobbying for regulatory frameworks that advantage licensed institutions over crypto-native firms.
BIS (Bank for International Settlements)
The BIS Innovation Hub's CBDC research including Projects mBridge and Nexus, Basel Committee crypto capital rules, and BIS's role as the central bank of central banks.
BIS and Tokenization: The Central Bankers' Bank Shapes Digital Finance Standards
The Bank for International Settlements — through its research, working groups, and innovation projects — is the most influential institution in shaping how central banks think about tokenization, CBDCs, and digital finance infrastructure.
Climate Policy and Proof of Work: Crypto's Energy Debate Meets Tokenization Regulation
Bitcoin's proof-of-work energy consumption has become a climate policy issue — with the EU considering PoW bans, US states restricting Bitcoin mining, and the industry arguing for renewables. How the energy debate shapes tokenization policy.
Consumer Protection in Tokenized Markets: From Disclosure to Custody to Redress
Tokenized assets require adapted consumer protection frameworks — disclosure rules designed for prospectuses don't fit token whitepapers, custody protections designed for brokerages don't fit self-custody, and redress mechanisms designed for regulated entities don't fit DeFi protocols.
CPMI (Committee on Payments and Market Infrastructures)
The BIS committee that sets global standards for payment system safety, cross-border payment efficiency, and tokenized settlement infrastructure.
CPMI and Cross-Border Payments: How the BIS Committee Is Using Tokenization to Fix International Transfers
The Committee on Payments and Market Infrastructures is using its G20 cross-border payments mandate to promote tokenization as a solution to expensive, slow international money transfers — with significant policy implications.
EMIR Refit and Tokenized Derivatives: How Post-Trade Rules Apply On-Chain
The European Market Infrastructure Regulation governs derivatives clearing and reporting. Its REFIT amendments and interaction with tokenization create new compliance obligations for on-chain derivatives platforms.
EU AI Act Meets Tokenization: When Digital Assets Use Artificial Intelligence
Tokenization platforms that use AI for trading, risk management, or compliance face dual regulatory obligations under both MiCA and the EU AI Act. Navigating the intersection requires understanding both frameworks.
EU Data Act and Tokenization: Smart Contracts Under Regulatory Scrutiny
The EU Data Act introduced provisions governing smart contracts — a significant policy intervention that affects tokenization platforms across the European Union.
Financial Inclusion and Tokenization: The Policy Debate Between Promise and Reality
Tokenization and crypto are frequently promoted as tools for financial inclusion — reaching the 1.4 billion unbanked. The political economy of this argument reveals both genuine potential and significant risks that regulators must navigate.
Financial Sovereignty and Tokenization: How Countries Use Regulation to Control Capital
Financial sovereignty — a state's control over monetary policy, capital flows, and payment systems — is directly challenged by borderless crypto assets and cross-border tokenized securities. Regulation is the primary tool states use to assert control.
Measuring Policy Uncertainty in Crypto: A Framework for Investors
Regulatory uncertainty is the largest non-market risk in tokenization investment. A systematic framework for measuring and tracking policy uncertainty — across jurisdictions, regulatory dimensions, and time — provides investors with actionable risk intelligence.
OECD on Tokenization: Tax Policy, Capital Markets, and the Standards Gap
Beyond CARF, the OECD has produced substantial research on tokenization's implications for tax policy, capital markets efficiency, and the gaps in international standards — positioning the organisation as a key intellectual force in digital asset policy.
The Regulatory Risk Premium in Tokenized Assets: Measuring Policy Uncertainty
Tokenized assets trade at discounts or premiums based on regulatory clarity — the 'regulatory risk premium' that sophisticated investors must price when evaluating tokenization opportunities across jurisdictions.
Tokenization and Monetary Policy: How Digital Assets Are Changing Central Banking
Tokenization and crypto assets are creating new monetary policy transmission challenges — from stablecoin deposit substitution to tokenized money markets, from CBDC design tradeoffs to the monetary implications of DeFi yield.
UK Law Commission Digital Assets Report: Establishing the Third Category
The Law Commission's 2023 landmark report on digital assets recommended that England and Wales recognise a 'third category' of personal property — a legal innovation with profound implications for tokenized assets.
US vs EU Tokenization Policy: The World's Most Important Regulatory Comparison
The United States and European Union have taken fundamentally different approaches to tokenization regulation — comprehensive rules (EU) vs. legislation-then-enforcement (US). This benchmark compares them across eight dimensions.
World Bank and Tokenization: Development Finance Meets Digital Assets
The World Bank has engaged with tokenization through its own bond issuances (Kangaroo bond on blockchain, BOND-i), developing country fintech work, and its remittance reduction mandate — making it an institutional bridge between digital finance and development economics.
World Economic Forum: Davos, Tokenization Reports, and the Multi-Stakeholder Standard
The World Economic Forum's Centre for the Fourth Industrial Revolution and Digital Currency Governance Consortium have made it one of the most influential convening and standard-setting bodies in tokenization policy.