Derivatives trading company CME Group says it is piloting the use of distributed ledger for wholesale payments and tokenization, using Google Cloud’s Universal Ledger, a new permissioned DLT offering. So far it has completed the first phase of testing with plans to involve clients later in the year. It is eyeing a launch in 2026.
“As the President and new Administration have encouraged Congress to create landmark legislation for common-sense market structure, we are pleased to partner with Google Cloud to enable innovative solutions for low-cost, digital transfer of value,” said Terry Duffy, CME Group Chairman and CEO. “Google Cloud Universal Ledger has the potential to deliver significant efficiencies for collateral, margin, settlement and fee payments as the world moves toward 24/7 trading.”
While the announcement is thin on detail, an area that is attracting considerable attention in traditional finance is the tokenization of collateral, particularly the use of tokenized collateral for margin purposes. Last month the CME’s regulator, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), announced plans for tokenization pilots. It also discussed using stablecoins. It follows a CFTC digital asset subcommittee working group that explored the ins and outs of tokenizing collateral.
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